Earlier today, Bruin alum Kareem Abdul-Jabbar announced that he is battling a rare form of leukemia. 

The greatest player in college basketball history made the announcement to draw attention to the importance of early detection of the illness. He stated that he is currently in remission and managing his disease.

During his UCLA career, he led the Bruins to three consecutive NCAA championships and a three-year record of 88-2 while earning multiple national Player of the Year Awards. He is the NBA's all-time leading scorer and six-time MVP with the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers.

He is also a noted author and scholar.

Everyone at UCLA wishes our friend good luck in his fight against his illness.

"Kareem is one of the most revered figures in our athletics history for his success both on and off the court, and we were shocked to hear the news of his illness," said UCLA director of athletics Dan Guerrero. "He is a man of great dignity and knowing Kareem, I am sure that he will win this battle and all of UCLA is in his corner."

"Kareem is the ultimate competitor and with the fight he has, he'll beat this thing," said UCLA head men's basketball coach Ben Howland. "Everyone in the UCLA family is praying and pulling for him."

To learn more about the issue, you can follow Kareem on twitter: www.twitter.com/kaj33 or go to his web page: http://kareemabduljabbar.com/. 

Also, here is today's L.A. Times story on Kareem's announcement.