Son says Paterno has lung cancer

Published 4:00 am Saturday, November 19, 2011

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Days after losing the job he held for nearly a half century, former Penn State coach Joe Paterno was diagnosed with a treatable form of lung cancer.

Scott Paterno, the Hall of Fame coach’s son, said in a statement provided Friday to The Associated Press that his father’s doctors are optimistic the 84-year-old Paterno will make a full recovery.

The news came shortly after Penn State said the NCAA would look into the school’s handling of a child sex abuse scandal involving former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky. Paterno was fired by the board of trustees Nov. 9 for failing to do more about an abuse allegation against Sandusky than report it to his superiors.

“Last weekend, my father was diagnosed with a treatable form of lung cancer during a follow-up visit for a bronchial illness,” Scott Paterno said in the brief statement. The doctor’s visit came the same weekend the school played its first game since the 1960s without Paterno leading the Nittany Lions — Penn State lost, 17-14 to Nebraska.

“As everyone can appreciate, this is a deeply personal matter for my parents, and we simply ask that his privacy be respected as he proceeds with treatment,” Scott Paterno said.

Earlier Friday, The Citizens Voice of Wilkes-Barre reported that Paterno had been seen Wednesday visiting the Mount Nittany Medical Center and was treated for an undisclosed ailment and released.

Longtime defensive coordinator Tom Bradley replaced Paterno on an interim basis. He broke the news to the Nittany Lions after the team arrived in Columbus, Ohio, for today’s game against Ohio State.

“I told them sometimes words pale at a time like this. I felt they should hear it from us, exactly what it was, that we were told that it was a treatable lung cancer,” Bradley said. “It’s just one of those things. It’s a tough time for the players.”

Former Penn State quarterback Todd Blackledge, now an ESPN analyst, said Paterno never mentioned the illness when he visited his former coach Thursday in State College.

A Penn State spokesman in Columbus said Friday night that as far as he knew, Paterno never smoked.