Penn State official Tim Curley has lung cancer, his wife and attorney ...

Tim Curley, who has stepped down as Penn State?s athletic director while he fights charges of perjury and failure to report a crime related to the Jerry Sandusky scandal, is now fighting another battle.

Cancer that caused doctors to remove part of one lung in 2010 is being monitored closely by doctors, his wife and attorney have confirmed.

?During this difficult time, Tim did not want his health to be a distraction and has been dealing with this privately,? his wife Melinda Curley said in a statement to The Patriot-News.

Sources close to the family said the Curley?s wanted to keep his situation private, because he didn?t want it to appear he was trying to get sympathy as his trial nears.

Curley and former vice president for business and finance, Gary Schultz, were both charged Nov. 5 with lying to the grand jury that was investigating Sandusky, and failing in 2002 to tell police about an incident reported to them by assistant coach Mike McQueary.

Both have maintained they are innocent, and their attorneys have said several times that they are looking forward to proving they did nothing wrong at trial.

?Mr. Curley did not want his personal health issues to overshadow or minimize the serious legal issues at hand,? said Curley?s attorney Caroline Roberto. ?However, despite his illness, Mr. Curley has remained totally focused on doing whatever is necessary to demonstrate that he is not guilty of the crimes with which he has been charged.?

No arraignment date has been set for the men.

At a December preliminary hearing on the charges, McQueary testified that he was sure he explained in graphic detail that he?d witnessed Sandusky sexually assaulting a young boy in the locker room of the Penn State football building late at night in March 2002.

Curley testified before the grand jury that he was told only about something akin to horseplay.

Schultz said it might have been sexual, but didn?t seem serious enough to call police.

Both decided, with the approval of then-president Graham Spanier, that the best course would be to ban Sandusky from bringing children to the locker rooms.

Curley also notified Sandusky?s charity, The Second Mile, about the decision.

McQueary said he told Joe Paterno a less graphic version of the story, out of respect.

Four days after charges were announced in November, Spanier and Paterno were fired amid a public firestorm.

Paterno announced he had been diagnosed with lung cancer about one week after he was fired. Paterno has been undergoing intense treatment, but is fairing well, his family has said.

Curley chose to take a different route, his attorney said in her statement, and his wife said her husband is only being watched, not treated.

?This is a personal and private matter that has affected our family since June 2010,? Melinda Curley said. ?... He has not required chemotherapy or radiation, however, doctors continue to monitor his condition. ... We are thankful for all the love and support he has received from family and friends and continue to hope for a full recovery.?

Source: http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2012/01/penn_state_official_vowing_to.html

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