Pelé’s health deteriorates as cancer worsens

Pelé will spend Christmas in hospital, his medical team and family said Thursday night, as he receives treatment for worsening cancer as well as kidney and heart problems.

The 82-year-old Brazilian has been battling colon cancer since September 2021 and has been in hospital since November 29 to allow doctors to reevaluate his chemotherapy. A statement from the Albert Einstein Hospital in São Paulo yesterday said that Pelé “requires greater care related to renal and cardiac dysfunctions” and also reported a “progression” of his cancer. However, it added that Pelé was not in intensive care. Doctors have also diagnosed him with a respiratory infection.

Earlier this month, Pelé’s daughters Kely Nascimento-Deluca and Flavia Arantes sought to reassure fans about his health, denying reports that he had been placed in end-of-life care as supporters held a vigil outside the hospital.

They said Thursday on Instagram that they would be spending Christmas with their father at the hospital. “Our Christmas at home has been suspended,” they wrote. “We decided with the doctors that, for various reasons, it would be better for us to stay here with all the care that this new family at Einstein gives us!!”

Accompanied by a picture of them smiling, the sisters thanked Pelé’s fans for their support and wished them a happy festive season.

 “We are going to turn this room into a Sambodrome [just kidding], we will even make caipirinhas [not kidding!!],” they joked, referring to Brazil’s famous cocktail.