Former Tennis player Martina Navratilova revealed on Monday (January 2) that she has been diagnosed with breast and throat cancer. Navratilova fought and won many tennis battles and is now hoping for a “favourable outcome” in her cancer fight.
The tennis legend called the diagnosis a “double whammy”, stating that is serious but still fixable. In a statement to Tennis.com, the 66-year-old said, “I’m hoping for a favorable outcome. It’s going to stink for a while, but I’ll fight with all have I got.”
All you need to know about Martina Navratilova
The former number one was born in Czechoslovakia and became a citizen of the United States in 1981. She is widely considered among the greatest tennis players of all time. After becoming an American citizen, Navratilova came out as gay and remained a gay rights trailblazer.
She proposed to her longtime partner Julia Lemigova in 2014 and married her in the same year. They live in Miami with their two daughters.
This is not the first time Navratilova has been diagnosed with cancer as she was also diagnosed with breast cancer back in 2010. It was cured.
But the recent diagnosis came after Navratilova reportedly noticed an enlarged lymph node in her neck in November. She saw it during WTA Finals in Fort Worth, Texas.
While the neck’s lymph was being tested, a lump in her breast was also discovered during the tests. Later, it was found to be unrelated to cancer.
In a statement sent to the news agency AFP, her agent said, “When it didn’t go down, a biopsy was performed, the results came back as stage one throat cancer.”
“The prognosis is good and Martina will start her treatment this month. The cancer type is HPV (human papillomavirus) and this particular type responds really well to treatment. Both these cancers are in their early stages with great outcomes,” the agent added.
In her illustrious career, she won a total of 59 Grand Slam titles across singles and doubles, becoming a dominant payer of her era. Her Major titles included 31 doubles and 10 mixed doubles adding to her 18 singles titles.
Still, her Wimbledon record is unparalleled. She has nine singles titles more than anyone else. Roger Federer won eight men’s titles while Serena Williams won the women’s title seven times.
After her statement was published, her fans and well-wishers quickly took to social media to offer support.
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