For the second time in a few months, Vitale has been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer
College basketball commentator Dick Vitale, of the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame, who has served as an ESPN personality for the past four decades, revealed Monday that he has been diagnosed with lymphoma, a rare form of cancer. He was diagnosed with cancer for the second time in a few months and needed several surgeries after being diagnosed with melanoma in August.
Vitel has already been diagnosed with melanoma but will need six months of chemotherapy and steroid regimens to fight the lymphoma. He credits early screening for his diagnosis in both cases, and after experiencing recent symptoms and being diagnosed quickly, his doctor says lymphoma has a 90% cure rate.
“Having said all this, I consider myself very lucky,” he said in a statement from ESPN. “I’ve seen for myself that cancer can affect family, children and all your loved ones. It can get you down to your knees. It’s physically and emotionally exhausting. It robs you of a lot of things in life for some very unfortunate patients. I never ignore that That’s why I’m so lucky. “
