Former world No. 1 tennis player Martina Navratilova said Monday that she has been diagnosed with throat and breast cancer.
The 66-year-old is considered among the greatest players of all time, winning a total of 59 Grand Slam singles and doubles titles. The last was a mixed doubles championship with Bob Bryan at the 2006 US Open, a month before his 50th birthday.
“This double blow is serious but can still be fixed,” Navratilova said in a statement to the WTA.
“I’m hoping for a favorable outcome. It’s going to stink for a while, but I’m going to fight with everything I’ve got.”
Czech Navratilova, who became a US citizen in 1981, was also diagnosed with and beat breast cancer in 2010.
Navratilova added that the cancer was in stage 1 and the prognosis was good, with treatments to start next week.
Enlarged lymph node
The cancer was first discovered in early November during the WTA Finals in Texas, when Navratilova noticed a swelling on her neck that would not go down.
“Martina noticed an enlarged lymph node in her neck during the WTA Finals in Fort Worth,” Navratilova’s representative Mary Greenham said. “When it didn’t work, a biopsy was done, the results came back as stage 1 throat cancer.
Needless to say my phone and twitter are blowing up so I’ll say it again – thank you all for your support and I’m not done yet 🙂
Xoxoxo
—@Martina
“At the same time that Martina was having her throat tested, a suspicious shape was found in her breast, which was later diagnosed as cancer, completely unrelated to throat cancer.
“Both cancers are in their early stages with great results.”
Greenham said Navratilova, who now works as a television and radio tennis presenter, will not travel to Melbourne for the Australian Open from January 16-29, but hopes to contribute to the broadcasts remotely.
“Martina will not be covering the Aussie Open for the Tennis Channel from her studio, but looks forward to joining from time to time via Zoom,” Greenham said.
Navratilova originally retired in 1994, after a record 167 singles titles and 331 weeks at No. 1 in the WTA rankings. He returned to the tour to play doubles in 2000 and sometimes also competed in singles.
Navratilova was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2000. She has worked as a television analyst in recent years.