Billiards Legend Jeanette Lee Diagnosed With Terminal Cancer

Jennette Lee, considered one of the greatest billiards players ever, has been diagnosed with terminal cancer, according to a GoFundMe page created by family and friends, via TMZ.

Lee, 49, goes by the nickname "Black Widow" for her confident style and success. She has been given a "few months" to a year to live, the GoFundMe page indicated.

"In typical Black Widow fashion, she has vowed to fight the progress of her disease as fiercely as possible with both chemotherapy, which has already begun, and a succession of upcoming surgeries."

Lee also expressed resolve to the American Poolplayers Association.

"I intend to bring the same resolve I brought to the billiards table to this fight," she said. "(Former NC State coach) Jim Valvano so eloquently told us to ‘Never give up.' I owe it to my three young daughters to do exactly that."

Lee is the single mother of three daughters, ages 16, 11 and 10. She won the WPBA's U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship and WPBA Nationals in 1994, during her most dominant stretch. She was inducted into the Billiard Congress Hall of Fame in 2013.

Lee was forced to "stop playing the game at a high-level years ago after battling the effects of scoliosis," TMZ reported. Now, she faces multiple treatments and surgeries as she fights for her life.

Written by
Sam Amico spent 15 years covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated, FOX Sports and NBA.com, along with a few other spots, and currently runs his own basketball website on the side, FortyEightMinutes.com.