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Football legend Pelé (photo from 2017)
Photo: Alexander Zemlianichenko / dpa
According to the doctors treating him, the condition of Brazilian football legend Pelé has deteriorated drastically.
As the Albert Einstein Hospital in São Paulo announced on Wednesday evening, the 82-year-old's cancer is progressing.
The doctors also announced "kidney and cardiac dysfunction".
However, Pelé is "still in a normal room, where he receives the necessary care".
Minutes before the latest bulletin on the three-time world champion's condition was released, two of his daughters, Kely Nascimento and Flavia Arantes, had announced on their Instagram accounts that their father will be spending the holidays in hospital.
»Our Christmas at home fell through.
We have decided with the doctors that for various reasons it is better to stay here, with all the care of our new family," read the message, which was accompanied by a photo of the two smiling sisters.
tumor in the colon
Pelé was admitted on November 29 for a chemotherapy reevaluation after a tumor was found in his colon in September 2021.
During his stay, he was initially treated for a respiratory infection, which, according to the hospital, was quickly overcome.
In early December, his daughters tried to dispel a report in the Folha de São Paulo newspaper that Pele was no longer responding to chemotherapy and was being treated palliatively.
The hospital did not address this report in its statements.
During the World Cup in Qatar, numerous messages were sent from Pelé's Instagram account.
In a recent post, he congratulated Lionel Messi's Argentina national team on winning their third World Cup title and paid tribute to the brilliant performance of France's star striker Kylian Mbappé in last Sunday's final.
Last but not least, the Brazilian national team and the fans of the Seleção sent the idol best wishes for a recovery in various messages from Qatar.
Mbappé wrote on Twitter in early December: "Pray for the king".
This applies now more than ever.
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