Jason Collins, the first active NBA player to come out as gay, has terminal cancer. The athlete, who played for seven NBA teams from 2001 to 2014, revealed Thursday that he has Stage 4 glioblastoma, a cancerous brain tumor. Collins, 47, told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne that his tumor cannot be treated with chemotherapy or safely removed with surgery, leaving his prognosis at just 11 to 14 months. Glioblastoma is one of the deadliest forms of cancer, with a standard prognosis of 12 to 18 months and a five-year survival rate of just 5 percent. The NBA first announced that Collins was receiving treatment for a brain tumor in September. The athlete said Thursday that he has been experiencing symptoms, including severe brain fog, since August. Collins came out as gay in 2013, one year before retiring from the NBA, becoming the first player to come out while still active. He married film producer Brunson Green, his partner of 11 years, in May. In his ESPN essay, Collins said he is pursuing a new course of treatment in Singapore. “If what I’m doing doesn’t save me, I feel good thinking that it might help someone else who gets a diagnosis like this one day,” he said.
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