Martina Navratilova says she is now ‘cancer free’ after overcoming breast and throat cancer.
The tennis legend revealed the good news in an emotional interview with Piers Morgan, adding that he feared he “wouldn’t see next Christmas.”
The 66-year-old said the diagnosis forced her to put plans to adopt a child with wife Julia Lemigova on hold and even made a list of things she wanted to do before she died.
In an interview on Morgan’s TalkTV show, which will air tomorrow, Navratilova said the double diagnosis had terrified her, but confirmed that “as far as you know, I don’t have cancer.”
He added that he only has two more weeks of radiation treatment. radiation therapy to her breast and that after this ‘I should be good to go’.
The tennis legend confirmed that she has beaten breast and throat cancer in an interview with Piers Morgan (pictured together)
The 66-year-old, pictured here holding the Wimbledon trophy in 1990, received the double diagnosis in December.
In an emotional interview, Navratilova revealed that she was afraid she would not see the next Christmas.
The tennis star, who won 59 major titles in a career that spanned four decades, announced that he had been diagnosed with cancer earlier in the year, prompting an outpouring of support.
She had previously beaten breast cancer in 2010, but said she was afraid she wouldn’t see Christmas 2023 after it returned.
Navratilova confirmed that she was diagnosed after doctors found an enlarged lymph node in her neck during the WTA finals in Fort Worth in November, with tests later confirming that she had breast and throat cancer.
After being diagnosed early last December, she said: “(I’m thinking) I’ll see this Christmas, but maybe not next Christmas.”
She added: ‘Who has two cancers at the same time? I’ve never been a failure, but this is getting ridiculous.
However, displaying the spirit that guided her to success on the tennis court, Navratilova defiantly said: “Give up, give up, stop, that’s not an option for me.” Keep going.
She added: “Quitting is just not in my DNA.”
Fortunately, doctors informed Navratilova that her cancer was ‘extremely treatable’, the Sun reports.
He said that during treatment, which took place while wearing a specially tight-fitting mask, he was moved to tears when nurses played Elton John’s I’m Still Standing while he was in hospital.
The singer had dedicated the song to the Czech-born athlete at a concert in Paris during the French Open in the 1980s.
Now a naturalized American, the tennis player told Morgan that she began writing her wish list after the diagnosis.
She said: ‘This may sound very superficial, but I was like, okay, ‘What kicker car do I really want to drive if I live like a year?’
But now the tennis commentator will have more time than she feared after beating the disease after a grueling combination of chemotherapy, radiotherapy and proton therapy.
In the interview, which will feature a video of Navratilova ringing a bell at the hospital to indicate all was well, Navratilova says it was the hardest thing she’s ever done.
However, she added that she told herself to “suck it up” after seeing children as young as six months being treated for cancer at the same clinic.
Navratilova, pictured here holding the Wimbledon winners’ plate, said the deal was the toughest thing she had ever done in her life.
Navratilova, pictured with his wife and former Russian model Julia Lemigova (left), has had a colorful life off the court.
The athlete, pictured here at Wimbledon in 1990, said she wrote a wish list after her most recent cancer diagnosis.
During her playing career, the Czech-born player dominated women’s tennis with Chris Evert (pictured together at Wimbledon in 1978)
Navratilova, pictured here with her wife Julia Lemigova, said she was overwhelmed with support after announcing her diagnosis.
The news that the Wimbledon legend has beaten the disease will be welcome news for fans, who overwhelmed her with their support after announcing that she was battling cancer again.
Navratilova said she was not “done” yet after the diagnosis, adding: “I hope for a favorable outcome.” It’s going to suck for a while, but I’ll fight with everything I’ve got.
In a statement issued at the same time, their representative described the prognosis as “good” and that, since they had been detected early, the treatment for them had “excellent results.”
Navratilova’s open defiance following her diagnosis has been a feature of her life both on and off the tennis court.
Over the course of her 40-plus-year career, the Prague-born athlete won 59 Grand Slam titles, including 31 in the women’s doubles and 10 in the mixed doubles.
She dominated women’s tennis in the ’70s and ’80s with Chris Evert, and the pair have been great friends off the court, with Evert supporting her through her recent treatment and Navratilova returning the favor as her rival battled ovarian cancer. .
His last win came at the 2006 US Open, when he won the mixed doubles with Bob Bryan just a month shy of his 50th birthday.
Navratilova had originally retired in 1994, but returned to playing doubles and occasional singles tournaments in 2000, the same year she was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
Becoming a television analyst in recent years, Navratilova was outspoken throughout her playing career with her political views and sexual orientation.
As an openly gay woman, she would have her romantic partners sit courtside at championship games without anyone in the crowd necessarily knowing.
The tennis ace, shown here lifting the Wimbledon trophy in 1978, has often been outspoken during her career.
The 59-time Grand Slam winner has been outspoken in recent years about trans athletes and was one of the few openly gay tennis players on tour during her career.
Navratilova, pictured here in 2019, said she told herself to stop complaining about her treatment after seeing children with cancer at the clinic.
She was also vehemently criticized by LGBTQ+ advocates when she published an opinion piece in London’s Sunday Times in February 2019 against rules that would support transgender athletes competing against other women, saying they would “reward cheaters and punish cheaters.” innocent”.
‘Clearly that can’t be right. You can’t just proclaim yourself a woman and be able to compete against women,” she, too, said in a now-deleted 2019 tweet.
“There have to be some standards, and having a penis and competing as a woman would not meet that standard.”
The tennis legend has never been afraid to do things her own way, having forged her path to stardom by leaving Czechoslovakia when she was just 18 years old.
He has since obtained US citizenship and married Russian model Julia Lemigova, and the couple had two daughters, Victoria, 21, and Emma, 17, from Julia’s previous relationship.
Navratilova first met Julia more than 20 years ago in a Parisian gay bar and they married in 2015 after nine years together.
In 2012, Martina said motherhood had changed her life and she had cut back on her travels to spend more time with her family.
Raising the sensitive subject of motherhood at the time, presenter Kirsty Young said that many high-profile gay couples have had children, before asking, “Would you have wanted children or did that coincide with your Grand Slam years?”
Martina responded: ‘More or less, well, those years are over, I’m already in menopause, so that ship has sailed!’
However, he added: “I never really had the opportunity to have a child, but now I’m in a relationship with my partner and she has two girls, so now I’m a father.”
About motherhood, Martina said: “It’s hard, two girls, but it’s fun, it’s incredible.”
