Brazilian football legend Pele has been hospitalised for colon tumour treatment, Sao Paulo’s Hospital Albert Einstein said.
The three-time World Cup winner had surgery to remove a colon tumour in September, with the hospital saying at the time that he would also need to have chemotherapy.
The hospital said the 81-year-old was in a stable condition and would be discharged in the next few days. It also added that Pele was now “continuing” his treatment.
Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, Pele has suffered from a series of health issues in recent years. He had prostate surgery in 2015 after he was admitted to hospital for the second time in six months, and he was admitted again for a urinary infection in 2019.
Pele was briefly put in intensive care after surgery on his right colon. He was discharged on September 30, almost one month after being hospitalised.
Pele had been recovering at his home in Guaruja, outside Sao Paulo. He published several videos and photos on his social media channels showing his health is improving.
The Brazilian’s latest Instagram post was published Tuesday — a picture of him and another World Cup winner, Germany great Franz Beckenbauer.
Pele won the 1958, 1962 and 1970 World Cups and remains Brazil’s all-time leading scorer with 77 goals in 92 matches.
