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Karl has surgery to remove cancerous thyroid
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Boise State men’s basketball standout Coby Karl underwent thyroid surgery Monday evening in a local Boise hospital.
A release from the university athletic department said Karl found a lump last fall and consulted a doctor a few weeks ago and discovered it was papillary carcinoma.
“Coby had a common type of cancer which had spread into two lymph nodes in his
neck. We removed the complete thyroid and both lymph nodes. He will have a course of radioactive iodine in six weeks and he should make an uneventful recovery,” Dr. Matthew Schwartz said. Schwartz was the doctor that performed the surgery.
Karl is recovering in a local hospital. The location has not been released because the family wishes for privacy while Karl recovers.
Head Coach Greg Graham visited with Karl frequently over the last few days and feels
positive that Karl can resume conditioning within the month.
“He’s doing well. He’s very upbeat and positive. I think it is a relief for him to get it taken care of and know that he is on his way to recovery and that things went as well as they did,” Graham said.
Karl released a statement Tuesday, saying, “Everything went well, and I plan on being back to 100 percent in a couple of weeks. I want to thank everyone for their concerns and prayers.”
Karl led the Broncos in scoring this season and was named second-team All-WAC.
Graham said Karl had waited until the end of the season to let the coaches know about his condition, and then told the rest of the team following the first round loss to La Tech in the conference tournament two weeks ago.
“He talked to the coaches with about three weeks left to go in the season, and that was the first we found out about it and knew about it. He let the team know after the season was over,” Graham said.
Karl has one more season of eligibility at Boise State. There are no reports from the coaches or the doctor that there could be any complication from the operation that would effect whether or not he can play next season.
“He may be skilled and may be a good shooter, and a lot of those things,” Graham said. “But probably his biggest thing is his character. He is just a great solid person and a great individual and the kind of kid you want your sons to grow up to be.”
Karl’s father George, the head coach for the Denver Nuggets, along with Karl’s mother Cathy and sisiter Kelci, were all in Boise for the surgery.
George flew in Sunday night and left town Tuesday evening to rejoin the Nuggets, but did make this statement regarding his son:
“Coby is a very strong person and a very strong athlete. We’re glad the surgery is over and he can get on with his recovery. This is a difficult process, but surgery is the beginning of recovery. Everything looks great, and he should be 100 percent real soon.
“My family and I appreciate the support of the team and the organization during this time. The spirit of togetherness has been fantastic.”
Trevor Horn
Sports Editor