Former UF president Ben Sasse reveals stage-four pancreatic cancer diagnosis: ‘It’s a death sentence’

Former Nebraska U.S. senator and former University of Florida president Ben Sasse has revealed he’s been diagnosed with terminal stage 4 pancreatic cancer. 

Sasse, 53, shared the news in an emotional post on social media. 

"This is a tough note to write, but since a bunch of you have started to suspect something, I’ll cut to the chase," he wrote on X. "Last week I was diagnosed with metastasized, stage-four pancreatic cancer, and am gonna die." 

Sasse ended his post by telling his followers that he’s "not going down without a fight."

"One sub-part of God’s grace is found in the jaw-dropping advances science has made the past few years in immunotherapy and more," he wrote. "Death and dying aren’t the same—the process of dying is still something to be lived."

Sasse, a Republican, was elected to the Senate in 2014. A vocal critic of President Donald Trump, Sasse was one of several Republicans who voted to convict Trump in his impeachment trial after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. 

Sasse becomes 13th UF president

Sasse left the Senate in 2023. After resigning, he went on to serve as the president of the University of Florida. He left that position last year to focus more on his family after his wife was diagnosed with epilepsy. 

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Politicians, leaders react to Sasse's diagnosis

UF Board of Trustees Chair Mori Hosseini and Interim President Donald W. Landry released a joint statement following Sasse’s post about his cancer diagnosis:

"On behalf of the Board of Trustees and the entire Gator Nation, we extend our sincerest thoughts and prayers to President Sasse, his wife Melissa and their lovely children. We were shocked and saddened by the news of President Sasse’s illness. This was staggering news. And yet, true to his character, Ben’s first instinct is to give comfort and reassurance to those of us who have known and admired him."

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush also responded to Sasse’s post. "You are an inspiration in a world that seems to lack it," Bush wrote on X. "Columba and I will be praying for you and your family." 

California Gov. Gavin Newsom told Sasse to "keep fighting the good fight." "When faced with death, Ben has chosen to provide us with a reminder of light and grace," Newsom wrote on X. "That takes courage. He has shared with the world a kind of hope that can only come from deep-rooted faith."

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Pancreatic cancer facts, stats

Pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the U.S., according to the National Cancer Institute. An estimated 51,980 people have died from pancreatic cancer this year. Pancreatic cancer accounts for 3% of all new cancer cases in the U.S. 

Since there are few symptoms in the early stages, pancreatic cancer is hard to detect early, according to the American Cancer Society.