Deion Sanders’ Cancer Diagnosis

Deion Sanders is a household name in American football and baseball. Widely regarded as one of the greatest cornerbacks in the history of the National Football League (NFL), Sanders has been nicknamed “Prime Time” and “Coach Prime” in celebration of his 14-year career with the NFL. The 58-year-old celebrity sportsman is also the head football coach at the University of Colorado Boulder.

In April 2025, Sanders was diagnosed with advanced bladder cancer during a routine CT scan. He has since undergone treatment and is now cancer-free. Here is what we know about Deion Sanders’ cancer diagnosis and treatment journey.

On July 28, 2025, at a news conference ahead of the 2025 season, Sanders shared the news of his recent bladder cancer diagnosis. He made the announcement while beside his doctor, Janet Kukreja, who is the Director of Urological Oncology at the University of Colorado Cancer Centre.

Sanders shared that a malignant tumor was discovered in his bladder during a routine CT scan. Following the diagnosis, he was presented with several treatment options. Dr. Kukreja detailed that they opted for the ‘curative’ option of complete surgical removal of his bladder—also known as a radical cystectomy—since the type of cancer he was diagnosed with was known to have a high recurrence rate. She added that Sanders’ tumor was fortunately discovered in time, allowing for a favourable prognosis despite him showing no signs of the disease prior to the diagnosis.

Sanders was scheduled to undergo the cystectomy shortly after his son, Shedeur Sanders, dropped from the first to the fifth round of the 2025 NFL draft. Wanting his sons to focus on football and not their father’s health, Sanders chose to share little information with them until the time was right.

“It was just, I knew as well I had a surgery coming up. My sons, to this day, don’t know what transpired. I just told them it was something with my foot, because I wanted to give them the focus on making the team and not focused [sic] on dad.”

Shedeur went on to be chosen by the Cleveland Browns and was the 144th pick in the fifth round of the draft.

Following the successful removal of his bladder, Sanders also underwent a neobladder reconstruction—a procedure that uses tissue from a patient’s own small intestine to reconstruct a functional bladder. Performed robotically by Dr. Kukreja, the procedure was carried out using a laparoscopic camera and required only small incisions.

Though regarded as a remarkable procedure that will allow those without their original bladder to live a somewhat normal life, a neobladder reconstruction also has its drawbacks. For instance, the reconstructed bladder cannot signal to the brain when it is time to use the toilet. While one does get used to how a neobladder functions over time, leakage remains an issue for many in their sleep.

Alluding to the challenges that come with recovering from the procedure, Sanders joked, “If you see a port-a-potty on the sideline, it’s real.”

Sanders shared that he did not consider discontinuing coaching even once during his cancer journey. Though he has had to make some changes to his coaching style as a result of his health, he has continued to significantly influence his team.

Sanders also detailed that Randy Moss was a great source of strength throughout his journey. Moss is a survivor of bile duct cancer. He also played in the NFL for 14 years and is widely regarded as one of the greatest wide receivers in the league’s history. On December 13, 2024, Moss revealed that he had undergone a Whipple procedure to treat the disease and was now cancer-free. Moss returned to a full-time role at ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown in September 2025.