Former Brazilian soccer player Pelé, hospitalized for almost a month, has worsened in recent days.
According to the medical team, the colon cancer he suffers from has caused kidney and heart problems.
“Edson Arantes do Nascimento presents progression of the oncological disease and requires more care related to renal and cardiac dysfunction.
The patient continues to be hospitalized in a common room, under the necessary care of the medical team,” said the brief statement released by the Albert Einstein Hospital in São Paulo on Wednesday.
Pelé, 82, has been hospitalized since November 29, when he arrived at the hospital for a routine visit to follow up on chemotherapy and was diagnosed with a respiratory infection.
Weeks before, he had been infected with covid-19.
Since then, the player has been reacting well to the respiratory infection, but is no longer responding to chemotherapy.
The cancer progresses and he now receives palliative care to relieve pain and shortness of breath.
One of his daughters, Kely Nascimento, who always tends to downplay the most pessimistic information about her father's health published by the Brazilian press, confirmed on social networks that the family will spend Christmas in the hospital.
"It's better that we stay here," she assumed, but at the same time she joked that they were going to turn the room into a "sambadrome" and that there would even be
caipirinhas
.
“We, as always, appreciate all the love that is transmitted to us here in Brazil and throughout the world.
Your love for him, your stories and your prayers comfort us enormously, because we know that we are not alone”, added the daughter of the ex-soccer player.
Before the last medical bulletin confirming the worsening of his state of health, the last official information was released on December 12.
At that time, the doctors stated that Pelé continued to improve and that he was still in a normal room, conscious and with stable vital signs.
In recent years, Pelé has undergone surgery three times: once for the placement of a hip prosthesis and another two to correct it.
In addition, he feels severe pain in his knees, which is why he has been using a walker for a long time.
But his state of health began a slow decline in August 2021, when in a routine check-up (which should have been carried out in 2020 but was postponed due to the covid-19 pandemic) doctors discovered a tumor in his colon.
Since then, his visits to the hospital have been continuous.
When he was last admitted, the world was already watching the World Cup in Qatar, which contributed to further tense emotions.
The fans of Santos, the club in which he achieved the vast majority of his feats, held a vigil outside the hospital.
The Brazilian team dedicated their victory against South Korea to him, and huge flags wishing for improvements could be seen in the stands.
In the skyscrapers of Doha there were projections of the soccer star and even drones in the sky forming the ten of his mythical shirt.
When Mbappé asked to "pray for the King", Pelé replied on Twitter thanking him and being happy to see him breaking some of his records.
Pelé has been following the competition from the hospital, or at least that is what the long texts published on his social networks indicate.
When Brazil said goodbye to the World Cup after the defeat against Croatia, they paid a long tribute to Neymar, who with the goal in that match had equaled Pelé's record of 77 goals with the national team shirt, according to the FIFA tally.
As a great guru and idol of the masses, he even allowed himself to console the fans after the premature departure of the canarinha.
“Despite the pain we are feeling with our elimination in the World Cup, I ask the Brazilians to remember what brought us the first five stars that we have on our chests.
Love is what unites us, ”he said.
He also celebrated that Neymar, Vinícius, Richarlison and company managed to unite the country, at least momentarily.
With Brazil split in two after the general elections, for many, the World Cup came as a balm and an opportunity to recover the national colors that Bolsonaro had appropriated.
In this deeply divided Brazil, Pelé is a consensus, and his figure works as a rallying point for patriotism when someone from the outside dares to open the hackneyed debate about who should be the best player in history.
After Argentina lifted the trophy in the most exciting final in living memory, Pele congratulated Messi for capping his career, Mbappe for his four goals and Morocco for his incredible campaign.
"Congratulations Argentina, I'm sure Diego is smiling now," he posted.
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