Denver Nuggets Coach George Karl Diagnosed With Throat Cancer

Sports News - February 17th, 2010 - Written By Bryan Cross

Denver Nuggets head George Karl is facing another unforeseen opponent. He announced to the organization earlier this week that he is in a second bout with cancer.

Karl overcame prostate cancer back in 2005, but has contracted throat cancer upon discovering a lump on a part of his throat roughly two months ago. After consulting a doctor, a biopsy of the sample confirmed that it was malignant, but "very treatable and curable." He will have to undergo both radiation and chemotherapy, which will force the coach to miss an unforeseen number of game this season.

"Cancer is a vicious opponent," Karl remarked. "Even the ones that are treatable, you never get a 100-percent guaranteed contract."

Karl is scheduled for 35 sessions of treatment to take place over a duration of the next six weeks. The treatments are likely to leave his throat area extremely raw and vulnerable to the touch. He will likely have to endure a feeding tube inserted through his stomach over the final weeks of the sessions.

"Keeping up your nutrition is a big part of the challenge," Karl said.

Karl's doctor, Jacques Saari, is very confident that the cancer is treatable. The process of chemotherapy and radiation will focus on getting the cancerous cells prone to treatment through chemotherapy, and eliminating them with radiation.

"The idea is to really hit it hard with radiation therapy," the doctor said.

Radiation must be conducted in a continual process for the six weeks of treatment. It will weaken Karl, specifically over the final few weeks of the course.

"Coach is going to have a tough time," Saari remarked. "The first three to four weeks, I think he is going to do very well. The last two-and-a-half to three weeks of the therapy will be difficult."

Karl knows what is in front of him, but is still accepting his new diagnosis.

"I don't know that I've come to terms with this yet," Karl said. "I have friends and family praying for me and the whole spiritual aspect is keeping me strong. But I'm not Superman."

"My desire is to do whatever I can to stay with my team throughout the treatment that I have to go through," he said. "The treatment began today and in general it's about a six-week treatment of radiation therapy and chemotherapy.

Karl has the Nuggets in first place in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. With a 35-18 record, they are 1 1/2 games ahead of Utah.

"Basically, my belief is this is a championship team and I want to do anything and everything I can to help them continue in their quest that we all want."

Coach told his players of his newest opposition during the team's first practice following the break for All-Star weekend.

"A situation like that, it's real life," Chauncey Billups, point guard for the Nuggets said. "You take the basketball out of it. You take work out of it. None of us can really be selfish and say, 'Hey, we're going to miss George if he doesn't coach some of the games.' We've got to take all that out of it. Your heart just goes out to him and his family. All we can really do is pray for him."

NBA Betting Lines have the Nuggets are among the favoritesfavored to claim the 2010 NBA championship, with odds at 12/1 according to Bodog sportsbook.