Legendary ESPN college basketball broadcaster Dick Vitale is still recovering from chemotherapy treatments that have held him out of covering the sport he loves. He hopes he’s nearing a return.
In September, Vitale announced he had completed radiation for his vocal cord cancer. The 84-year-old later said his target date to return was Tuesday, November 28th.
In a pair of photos posted to X, formerly Twitter, Vitale shared that he received 35 treatments on his vocal cords, and is currently working with speech therapists to strengthen his voice enough to return to the arena.
“Great news,” wrote Vitale. “Radiation wiped out the cancer but has affected by vocal cords — (praying) problem clears up so I can get the best medicine of all — sitting at courtside”.
Last month, Vitale revealed he had not spoken in months in hopes his voice would recover from the radiation treatments he underwent. The legendary voice was originally diagnosed with the cancer in July after previous bouts with melanoma and lymphoma.
“Dick has the full support of his entire ESPN family, and, while we look forward to a return to his rightful courtside perch, he needs to focus on fully mending his vocal cords,” ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a statement. “Sports fans everywhere will anxiously await his comeback whenever he is ready.”
