The 37-year-old had felt a pain in his left testicle ever since a minor crash on stage 5 and after examination from the Tinkoff-Saxo medical staff and x-rays in the Tour’s mobile radiology unit, hospital tests in Pau on Monday morning confirmed he had a cancerous lump. He has left the race as he begins his recovery.
Lance Armstrong was one of many to take to Twitter to voice support for Basso. The American himself suffered from testicular cancer in the late 1990s before recovering and making a successful return to cycling.
He was joined by another cyclist who has suffered from testicular cancer in the past, Markel Irizar. The 35-year-old Spaniard, who is currently at the Tour with Trek Factory Racing, fell ill back in 2002 before making a full recovery.
Tinkoff-Saxo owner Oleg Tinkov, teammates including Alberto Contador, and other names of the peloton past and present also tweeted their messages of condolence and support for Basso.
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