Martina Navratilova, Tennis Legend Announces Her Cancer ‘Double Whammy’

Tennis legend Martina Navratilova A diagnosis of a “double whammy” Cancer of the breast and throat.

The Stage 1 cancer of the throat was being tested on the 66 year-old female athlete. She had previously been diagnosed in 2010 with breast cancer and had undergone a lumpectomy as well as radiation treatments.

“This double whammy is serious but still fixable, and I’m hoping for a favorable outcome,” Navratilova told Tennis.com. “It’s going to stink for a while, but I’ll fight with all have I got.”

Navratilova noticed a lump in her neck while she was working as an analyst at WTA Finals, Fort Worth, Texas. The HPV-type throat cancer responds well to treatment and she will start treatment in a few weeks. She previously spoke of being a cancer survivor. Now, she will rely on her resilience.

“I really didn’t talk much about breast cancer before I had it,” Navratilova told PEOPLE magazine. “Now, I’m approached by women and we share our stories. It’s encouraging to see that there’s life after cancer.”

Navratilova won 59 Grand Slam titles in singles and doubles as well as mixed events during a career that began in mid-1970s. This was around the time when she left Czechoslovakia to play in the 1975 U.S. Open semifinals. After a record 167 singles titles as well as 331 weeks at No.1, Navratilova decided to retire in 1994. She was No. 1 in WTA rankings but she played doubles again in 2000. She won the 2006 U.S. Open mixed-doubles tournament.

Navratilova was inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame (ITAH) in 2000. She has also worked as a television analyst on tennis.

Navratilova has been a champion of gay rights since she came out to the world as a lesbian back in 1980. In 2019, she spoke out against biological males playing against women in sports. She was then attacked by the transcommunity. she quickly changed her position, saying, “It blew up and I realized perhaps I don’t know as much as I thought.”

In the Monday statement, Navratilova’s representative said she would not be a regular part of Tennis Channel’s coverage of the Australian Open later this month “but hopes to be able to join in from time to time” via video conference.