St. John's coach Steve Lavin has cancer

As if he didn’t have enough of a challenge when he took over the job of St. John’s basketball coach, Steve Lavin was diagnosed with an early stage of prostate cancer last fall, the school announced Friday morning.

Despite that condition, Lavin went through the season without interruption, and that will be the case as he gets treatment during the offseason.

A source close to the 46-year-old coach said he will receive “very unintrusive treatment.” No changes in the duties assigned to members of the basketball staff are necessitated by Lavin’s condition.

“My family feels fortunate that, through annual health exams, we detected my condition at an early stage,” Lavin said in a statement.

“This past fall, I didn’t want to distract our team, but with the season behind us, we are now working with medical experts and taking the proper steps to tackle this health challenge head on.”

According to the physician treating Lavin, his condition is considered “relatively low-grade” cancer. Dr. Jonathan Schiff, a board-certified urologist in private practice in New York City, said in the statement: “We are pleased that through early detection, we determined coach Lavin’s condition . . . could wait for treatment until the conclusion of the basketball season.

“We have spoken to Steve and his family about his options, and will proceed with a course of treatment shortly. I expect a complete cure of coach Lavin’s condition, and we anticipate a seamless continuation of his coaching duties.”

Two other Big East coaches, Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim and Connecticut’s Jim Calhoun, have overcome bouts with prostate cancer. Boeheim, now 66, was diagnosed with the disease in 2001. He missed three games and spent 14 days receiving treatment.

Contacted Friday in his office, Boeheim said he spoke with Lavin about his experience at the Final Four last weekend in Houston.

“When you find it early, there are treatments that are easier and not as complex as having surgery, which is what I had,” Boeheim said.

“It’s still something that is always going to scare you.

“Based on what I talked to Steve about, he’s probably going to get some sort of treatment rather than surgery. It’s very fixable. He’s a young guy and will come through this full speed in, I think, a very short period of time. I see people all the time who had surgery 20, 25 years ago. It’s one cancer that you can beat.”

Lavin completed his first St. John’s season with a 21-12 record and the school’s first NCAA Tournament bid since 2002. His incoming class of recruits is ranked No. 2 in the nation by ESPN and by Rivals.com.

“Our first priority is to support Steve and Mary as they take on this challenge,” St. John’s athletic director Chris Monasch said.

“We thank all in advance for their support of Steve and respect for his family’s privacy.”

Under Lavin, St. John’s returned to national prominence this past season with victories over four top 10 teams, including Duke, Pitt, Notre Dame and eventual national champion Connecticut. St. John’s lost to Gonzaga in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Lavin previously served as UCLA coach from 1997-2003 and spent the next seven years as a college analyst with ESPN.

He has been active the past 10 years with Coaches vs. Cancer and The V Foundation, named after the late North Carolina State coach Jim Valvano.

With Steven Marcus