The 62-year-old Abdul-Jabbar said his doctor didn’t give any guarantees, but informed him: “You have a very good chance to live your life out and not have to make any drastic changes to your lifestyle.”

Abdul-Jabbar, 62, made the public disclosure almost a year after he was first diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia, a cancer of the blood and bone marrow which studies have shown can be controlled and treated with medication.

According to the Leukemia & Lymphoma society, from 1999-2005 the five-year survival rate for CML is 53.3 percent.

CML patients have what is called the “Philadelphia Chromosome” (Ph chromosome).

“I’ve never been a person to share my private life, but I can help save lives,” Abdul-Jabbar, 62, said, noting the impact Magic Johnson has had on AIDS. “It’s incumbent on someone like me to talk about this.”

The former NBA All-star said he is taking oral drugs to treat the disease.

“You have a very good chance to live your life out and not have to make any drastic changes to your lifestyle,” Abdul-Jabbar quoted a doctor as saying.

from 1969 to 1989, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scored the highest points total of any player in league history (38,387), in addition to winning a record six Most Valuable Player Awards and six NBA championships, according to Wikipedia.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Has Leukemia: Reports