Former NBA Center Diagnosed With One Of The 'Deadliest Forms Of Brain Cancer' -- Yet Set To 'Fight It'

Last Updated:December 12, 2025, 10:21 IST

Jason Collins, first openly gay NBA player, is battling stage 4 glioblastoma. Supported by husband Brunson Green, he is undergoing aggressive treatment currently.

Former NBA center Jason Collins (X)

“I have cancer. But just like my grandmother fought it, I’m going to fight it."

Jason Collins has never shied away from a battle. The former NBA centre, who broke sporting ground as the first openly gay man to play in a major U.S. professional league, is now facing the toughest opponent of his life: stage 4 glioblastoma, one of the deadliest brain cancers known.

Speaking to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, Collins revealed that the diagnosis “came on incredibly fast." The 47-year-old said he’d brushed off early warning signs — memory lapses, trouble focusing — until they intensified in August.

“I’m an athlete," he said. “Unless something is really wrong, I’m going to push through."

But a CT scan made the reality impossible to outrun. Doctors found a fast-growing multiforme glioblastoma, aggressive enough that Collins was warned he could be “weeks" from death without immediate action.

Collins didn’t hesitate.

With husband Brunson Green at his side, along with a tight circle of family and friends, he began treatment: medication, radiation, chemotherapy — and now, an emerging immunotherapy protocol at a clinic in Singapore.

He said the approach reminds him of the moment he chose to come out publicly.

“I feel like I’m right back in that position," Collins said. “I might be the first person through this wall."

And guess what? He’s attacking the challenge head-on.

“We’re not going to sit back and let this cancer kill me without giving it a hell of a fight," he said. “We’re trying to hit it in ways it’s never been hit before."

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