Long-time former NCAA football coach Joe Paterno, under fire over the sex abuse scandal attached to his former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky, has been diagnosed with what his son is calling a "treatable form of lung cancer." Paterno is 84 years old.
Paterno's son Scott also said that his father's doctors are "optimistic he will make a full recovery.”
Although details remain somewhat vague, it is not often that 'lung cancer' and 'optimistic he will make a full recovery' go together.
According to SEER Statistics, the majority of cancers of the lung are found after the disease has metastasized, and in these cases the cancer has a 5 year relative survival rate of just 3.8%, one of the worst of all cancers.
Just 15% of cases are discovered in early stages, when the disease is localized, and even then the 5 year relative survival rate is only slightly better than 52%.
Had the press release stopped at 'treatable', there might be less speculation since virtually every cancer is treatable, the question is HOW treatable, and in the case of lung cancer the answer is 'not very successfully treatable.'
Considering the tragic circumstances surrounding Penn State and Mr. Paterno at the moment, little in the way of clarification is expected any time soon.
Sources: Washington Post, SEER Statistics
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