Reeve's Widow Has Lung Cancer

Dana Reeve, the widow of Superman actor Christopher Reeve, has been diagnosed with lung cancer, she announced yesterday.

Mrs Reeve, 44, who spent nine years caring for her husband after he was paralysed in a riding accident, said she had decided to disclose her illness because a tabloid newspaper was about to print the story

"I have recently been diagnosed with lung cancer, and am undergoing treatment," she said in a statement. "I have an excellent team of physicians, and we are optimistic about my prognosis.

"My family and I deeply appreciate the care and concern of our friends and supporters and trust that everyone understands our need and desire for privacy during this time. I hope before too long to be sharing news of my good health and recovery."

The Broadway actress won respect and admiration for the support she gave her husband after the 1995 accident that paralysed him from the neck down and left him confined to a wheelchair.

Mr Reeve died in October last year after a heart attack, but he had become a passionate campaigner for medical research, especially in the field of stem cells and had become a thorn in the side of George Bush.

In an interview with the Guardian two years ago, Mr Reeve accused the president and the Roman Catholic Church of obstructing medical research which might help him, and charged that there had been a serious violation of the constitutional separation between the affairs of state and church.

He also successfully lobbied Congress for better insurance protection against catastrophic injury, became chairman of the American Paralysis Association and created his own foundation to raise money for research and support those with disabilities.

Mrs Reeve, who has taken over her husband's role as campaigner for stem cell research, and has assumed chairmanship of the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation, said her husband's determination and strength was helping her deal with her illness. "As always, I look to him as the ultimate example of defying the odds with strength, courage and hope in the face of life's adversities."

A spokeswoman for the Foundation told the Associated Press that Mrs Reeve was not a smoker. Mrs Reeve has a son, Will, 13.