Sad to hear that, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is being treated for a rare form of leukemia. The NBA’s all time leading scorer and NBA Hall of Famer revealed on “Good Morning America” he was diagnosed last December with chronic myeloid leukemia a rare cancer of the blood and bone marrow, but now feels his prognosis is encouraging. Abdul-Jabbar, 62, said:
“I heard the world ‘leukemia,’ and I thought this was definitely a death sentence.”
“Having lost one of my closest friends to a different, highly aggressive form of leukemia, I knew how serious my diagnosis was,” said Abdul-Jabbar. “My own life expectancy became a question mark.”
Citing the way Los Angeles Lakers teammate Magic Johnson brought awareness to HIV, Abdul-Jabbar said he wants to do the same for his form of blood cancer, which can be fatal if left untreated.
The 7-foot-2 former UCLA and Los Angeles Lakers star and father of five said his condition can be managed by taking oral medication daily, seeing his specialist every other month and getting his blood analyzed regularly. He said he expects to lead a healthy life. And that’s very good news!
