Tisdale has lower part of right leg amputated
Surgery expected to rid ex-Sooner of cancer
Tisdale has lower part of right leg amputated

By Jenni Carlson

Published: August 27, 2008

Wayman Tisdale's lengthy battle with cancer has taken another turn.

The Oklahoma basketball legend had the lower part of his right leg amputated Monday.

Diagnosed early last year with cancer, he has been fighting it for the past 18 months. The surgery to remove the lower part of his leg is expected to eradicate the disease.

"I have complete faith that, with the Lord's blessings, this surgery will eliminate the cancer from my body,” Tisdale said in a statement.

In February 2007, Tisdale suffered a broken right leg when he fell down a flight of stairs at his Los Angeles home. While examining that injury, doctors discovered a cancerous cyst just below his knee.

After more than a month of inconclusive biopsies, tests finally determined the mass was malignant. Tisdale was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, the most common type of malignant bone cancer.

Tisdale had the cyst removed, had knee replacement surgery, then began chemotherapy.

"The hardest thing for me ... was when the doctor told me that I was going to have to take it easy for a while,” Tisdale said in an interview earlier this year. "I was like, ‘I don't know how to take it easy.' ”

Tisdale rose to stardom at Tulsa Washington High School, then became a three-time All-American at Oklahoma. A member of the 1984 U.S. Olympic team that won gold, the versatile big man spent 12 years in the NBA.

He never suffered a major injury during his basketball career.

After retiring from the NBA in 1997, Tisdale turned his attention from basketball to music. The smooth jazz guitarist composed and recorded music and toured around the world.

His cancer forced him to cancel 40 or 50 tour dates last year, but around Christmas, Tisdale returned to the stage.

Now, he must take off time to recover again. He hopes to start playing shows again later this fall and plans to host the "Smooth Jazz Cruise” next January.

Tisdale's latest album, "Rebound,” debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's contemporary jazz chart, and his current single, "Throwin' It Down,” is No. 6.

According to his publicist Earl Cole, Tisdale is resting now at his home in Tulsa.

"There's a lot more music inside me,” Tisdale said, "and once I am back on my feet, I look forward to sharing my joy with my fans, friends and fellow musicians.”

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