Steve Lavin Diagnosed With Prostate Cancer

St. John’s men’s basketball coach Steve Lavin revealed today that he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. Lavin was aware of his condition last fall, detecting the cancer in its early stages. From ESPN: “‘My family feels fortunate that through annual health exams, we detected my condition at an early stage,’ the 46-year-old Lavin said in a statement released by the school. ‘This past fall I didn’t want to distract our team, but with the season behind us, we are now working with medical experts and taking the proper steps to tackle this health challenge head on.’ The former UCLA coach was hired by St. John’s in April 2010 after seven years as a college basketball analyst for ESPN. ‘We are pleased that through early detection we determined Coach Lavin’s condition as a relatively low-grade cancer, and one that could wait for treatment until the conclusion of the basketball season,’ said Jonathan Schiff, a board-certified urologist in private practice in New York City. ‘We have spoken to Steve and his family about his options, and will proceed with a course of treatment shortly. ‘I expect a complete cure of Coach Lavin’s condition and we anticipate a seamless continuation of his coaching duties.’ Lavin received support Friday from two Big East coaches who had prostate cancer — Jim Calhoun of Connecticut and Jim Boeheim of Syracuse — and went on win NCAA championships.”