Paul Allen, a Microsoft co-founder, has been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
(Credit: NBA)Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has been diagnosed with cancer, according to a memo sent on Monday to employees of Vulcan, Allen's company.
Allen, who is a survivor of Hodgkin's disease, has been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, according to Vulcan CEO Jody Allen, who is also Paul Allen's sister.
Jody Allen's memo, which was also sent to the media:
To employees of Vulcan and affiliates:
I want to let you know that Paul was recently diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
He received the diagnosis early this month and has begun chemotherapy. Doctors say he has diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, a relatively common form of lymphoma.
This is tough news for Paul and the family. But for those who know Paul's story, you know he beat Hodgkin's a little more than 25 years ago and he is optimistic he can beat this, too.
Paul is feeling OK and remains upbeat. He continues to work and he has no plans to change his role at Vulcan. His health comes first, though, and we'll be sure that nothing intrudes on that.
We would ask you to respect Paul's privacy and not discuss this outside of the office.
If you have any questions, please ask your EC member.
Thank you in advance for what I know will be all your good thoughts for Paul.
Jody
Fellow Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates said he and his wife, Melinda, were keeping Allen in their thoughts.
"Melinda and I have Paul and his family in our thoughts and prayers," Gates said in a statement. "Paul is among my closest friends, and I know to him be a strong and resilient individual."
Updated at 6:55 p.m. PST with comment from Bill Gates.
It's been quite a while since Paul Allen worked to make Microsoft's products better, but he's doing just that.
While he hasn't rejoined the software maker he left more than 25 years ago, Allen is backing an effort to improve Microsoft Outlook. Allen's Vulcan Ventures announced on Monday the launch of its Xiant subsidiary and a beta of its first product, Xiant Filer. It is available as a free, 60-day trial, and Vulcan plans to eventually sell downloads of the product directly as well as through other Web sites.
(Credit:
Xiant)
"It's a return of sorts to Paul's roots," Vulcan Vice President Chris Purcell said in a statement. "Xiant Filer started as a personal project to help Paul keep up with heavy e-mail traffic. It worked so well we all started using it, which led us to take it to market."
Allen has been involved in a number of projects in and out of the tech world since leaving Microsoft. However, he has generally been in areas that steer well clear of Microsoft. Vulcan has also backed Gist, another Outlook ad-on.
With Xiant Filer, Allen is wading into competition with Microsoft and several companies that make their own Outlook add-ons. The product sounds similar in concept to Xobni, another tool for better managing an Outlook in-box. Xobni exited beta earlier this year.
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