Australian golfer Jarrod Lyle, who three times has undergone leukemia treatment, has decided to end his fight, according to social media posts by his wife, Briony.
Lyle, 36, who twice won on the Web.com Tour and has long been a revered figure in Australian golf, had returned to the hospital in May, six months after a third stem cell transplant to fight leukemia.
“Earlier today, Jarrod made the decision to stop active treatment and begin palliative care,” Briony Lyle wrote on the golfer’s Facebook page. “He has given everything that he’s got to give and his poor body cannot take any more. We’ll be taking him closer to home in the next couple of days so he can finally leave the hospital.”
Lyle first was diagnosed with the disease as a teenager in 1999, and it returned in 2012 before another recurrence last summer.
He made an emotional return to competition in late 2013 at the Australian Masters and then attempted to play a few Web.com Tour events to get ready for a return to the PGA Tour in 2014-15. He came back at the 2014 Frys.com Open but made just three cuts in 10 starts and decided that he needed more time to get healthy.
Lyle returned that fall to try to regain his PGA Tour card but eventually headed home to Australia to pursue other golf endeavors.
According to the Golf Australia website, doctors told the Lyles that there is no trace of leukemic cells in his body, “but the damage done in the fight to regain his body’s immunity levels has taken an exhausting toll.” For a time, Lyle lost his eyesight.
“He has reached his limit and the docs have finally agreed that they can no longer strive for a positive outcome,” Briony Lyle wrote. “My focus as of today is on our girls and doing whatever I can to get them through the challenges ahead. Jarrod will be closer to them very soon and will spend as much as he can with them.”
Lyle and his wife have two young daughters.