Sports fan are mourning the passing of Stuart Scott, the 49-year old longtime, well-respected ESPN anchor. Regular viewers have noted his occasional absences (he had fought the cancer for seven years) as well as his weight loss, and assumed he was seriously ill. br
What we may not have known, however, was that Scott was suffering appendix cancer—a very rare form of cancer. There are only 1,000 to 1,500 cases a year in the U.S. It is so rare, that doctors are still learning how to treat it, but have made some strides in recent years.
The disease is usually only found if a patient experiences appendicitis. When this vestigial organ is removed, the cancer is discovered. It is ironic that an organ we no longer even need, can be lethal. This is the same cancer that took the life of the beloved actress and humanitarian Audrey Hepburn.
--Sarah Hagerty
