Football icon Pele, 82, dies at 'end-of-life care' facility after his body stops responding to chemotherapy
Update: The Brazilian football legend Pele who had been receiving end-of-life care recently died on Thursday, December 29. The icon's daughter shared the news on Instagram. He died after a drawn-out battle with illness at Sao Paulo's Albert Einstein hospital.
------------------------
SAO PAULO, BRAZIL: One of football's greatest global icons, Pele, has been transferred to palliative care after his body became "unresponsive" to any further chemotherapy treatments in his battle against cancer. According to reports in his native Brazil, the 82-year-old, who was sent to the hospital last week, is receiving pain relief in an end-of-life unit because his intestinal cancer treatment has failed.
Pele was brought to Sao Paulo's Albert Einstein Hospital on Tuesday, November 29, with symptoms of "general swelling" and heart issues. According to a December 3 report in Folha de Sao Paulo, Pele's body is no longer responding to the chemotherapy therapy he was undergoing since September 2021, when he was operated on for bowel cancer.
READ MORE
Soccer legend Pelé is depressed and embarrassed to leave house because of poor health, says son
According to his doctors, he is currently in palliative care and will not be subjected to any more invasive tests or treatment. But he will receive "comfort measures" for symptoms like pain or shortness of breath. Palliative care is provided to patients with potentially fatal diseases or conditions, which is essentially end-of-life care. Many consider Pele, whose full name is Edson Arantes do Nascimento, to be the greatest footballer of all time, as reported by Daily Mail.
The Albert Einstein Hospital's statement on December 2, Friday, declared that Pele had also contracted a "respiratory infection" in his weakened state that was being treated with antibiotics. The former footballer is scheduled to remain in the hospital for more treatment in the coming days, according to the report.
According to the hospital's update, Pele is in a "stable state" and "in full control of essential functions." After a medical evaluation, the patient was transported to a common room, "without the necessity for hospitalization in a semi-intensive unit or ICU," according to a statement sent to the Brazilian media, as reported by Daily Mail.
In an Instagram post, Pele responded to a 'Get well soon' message projected onto a skyscraper in Qatar, where the World Cup is being held. He wrote, "Friends, I am at the hospital making my monthly visit. It's always nice to receive positive messages like this. Thanks to Qatar for this tribute and to everyone who sends me good vibes."
He helped Brazil win three World Cups in 1958, 1962, and 1970 and scored 643 goals in 659 official matches with the Brazilian team Santos. In 92 games for his country's national team, he scored 77 goals.