Former pole vaulter Tim Lobinger is set to lose his battle with cancer.
Hospital. emergency surgery. Tim Lobinger missed his son Okkert’s school enrollment, the former pole vaulter has been in the clinic for a total of 150 days this year. And yet, according to his doctors, he will probably lose his battle with cancer.
“My cancer is too aggressive”
“There will be no more healing for me. My cancer is too aggressive,” Lobinger told the Bild newspaper. The 50-year-old, who played for TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen and ASV Köln, was diagnosed with leukemia for the first time in March 2017, after which stem cell therapy saved his life. But the cancer came back, first in 2018 and then again in 2021.
“It started with joint problems,” he said: “Suddenly I had visible dents all over my body. On my legs, shoulders, head.” The new CAR T-cell therapy did not work for the former six-meter jumper.
“You know how bad I am”
“In February, the doctors told me that death was approaching. I should make arrangements, deal with my funeral and say goodbye to my loved ones,” said Lobinger: “The conversations with my children were tough, you know how bad it is suits me.”
The fact that the cancer is raging again is a shock for Lobinger, he is said to weigh only 66 kilos at a height of 1.93 m. But the former world and European indoor champion doesn’t want to give up, maybe science will develop another therapy option?
“There are always small ways to gain strength and not lose hope,” said Lobinger: “It’s worth fighting for every day that I live and can spend with my family.”
