Poker Pro Chad Brown Diagnosed with Cancer

The poker world was delivered some shocking news on Saturday when Vanessa Rousso tweeted that her husband, poker pro Chad Brown, has been diagnosed with cancer.

In three tweets released via her account @VanessaRousso, Rousso revealed that Brown had been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer and that a tumor had been removed on Friday.

In the last message, Rousso stated that the cancer looks like sarcoma and that a 10 lb tumor was removed from Brown's retroperitoneal area in his abdomen. They are waiting for the final pathology report to determine whether it is indeed sarcoma.

Well wishes and support has rolled in from across the poker community, including from cancer survivor Doyle Brunson.

He tweeted to Rousso, "I'm so soory Vanessa about Chad. I'm a cancer survivvor so if you want to talk, I'm your man." In a later tweet he stated, "... Come on man, knock this out. I did it and so can you!!!!"

A sarcoma is a cancer that forms from connective tissue cells that have been transformed. Depending on the type of sarcoma, long term survival can be as high as 70%.

Brown is a former actor turned poker player with over $3.1 million in professional earnings, including six WSOP final tables and three runner-up finishes.