LEMIEUX TALKS ABOUT TOUGHEST DAY OF HIS LIFE

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, January 16, 1993                   TAG: 9301160089
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B1   EDITION: METRO  
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: PITTSBURGH                                LENGTH: Medium
LEMIEUX TALKS ABOUT TOUGHEST DAY OF HIS LIFE
Mario Lemieux, talking publicly for the first time about his cancer, said Friday he "cried for hours" when he was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease.
Lemieux was an emotional wreck for a day, but now is determined to emerge from his latest and most serious medical crisis healthy - and resume what has been his best season.
"Any time you hear the word cancer, it's a scary thing," Lemieux said. "When the doctors gave me the news, I could hardly drive home because of the tears, and [I was] crying the whole day. That certainly was the toughest day of my life."
The Pittsburgh Penguins announced Tuesday that Lemieux has Hodgkin's disease, a cancer of the lymph nodes. Lemieux had known of the cancer since a malignant lymph node was removed from his neck Jan. 8.
The captain of the two-time Stanley Cup champions said the toughest moment so far was telling his teammates.
"I walked in [Wednesday] and everyone went silent, and that's not like our team," Lemieux said. "Kevin [Stevens] is always talking and Ulfie [Samuelsson] is always yapping. It was tough for everybody . . . I wasn't sure what to say and nobody else knew what to say. I've had the same experience, talking to people with cancer and not knowing what to say except good luck."
The bilingual news conference was televised live by all three Pittsburgh commercial TV stations, a Montreal station and a Canadian sports channel. About 150 reporters crowded into a hotel ballroom to hear Lemieux, his two doctors, Penguins president Howard Baldwin, general manager Craig Patrick, coach Scotty Bowman and NHL president Gil Stein answer questions in English and French.
More than a dozen TV cameras lined the rear of the room and about 25 still photographers took turns shooting closeups of Lemieux, whose 104 points in 40 games were threatening Wayne Gretzky's NHL single-season record of 216 points.
Fans got the news they wanted to hear: Lemieux's cancer was detected early enough that he has a 95 percent chance of surviving.
Lemieux first discovered a lump on his neck about 18 months ago, but wasn't concerned until six months ago when it began growing. Dr. Charles Burke, a team doctor, said the node removed Jan. 8 was relatively small in size.
"It's been a tough time for myself and my family, but the more I learn about the disease, the better I've felt," Lemieux said. "I've been feeling good for the last three or four days. I've had battles in my life since I was young and I've always come out on top, and I certainly expect to do that with this disease."
When he will play again is uncertain.
Due to a lung infection unrelated to his cancer, Lemieux won't begin radiation therapy for another two weeks. He then will begin five-days-a-week therapy for a month, and will also probably need a short recovery time from the radiation before playing hockey again.
With the lung infection, the Penguins' initial four- to six-week estimate for Lemieux's return now has been revised to six to eight weeks, or early to middle March. Lemieux, who has missed more than 100 games the past four seasons because of back pain, wants to return by the playoffs.

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB