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'Open' seasonChicago Sun-TimesJune 20, 2007By Steve PattersonA day after Cook County Board President Todd Stroger had his prostate removed and it was revealed he has been battling cancer for 10 months, a cloak of secrecy continued to hover over his condition. He's being treated at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and should be home soon, with public comments expected to come this week. And he will recover at home for the next few weeks, after which he will begin an aggressive campaign to raise awareness of prostate cancer and the need for early testing. But county officials -- including many in the Stroger administration -- learned most of that after the Chicago Sun-Times revealed it Tuesday. The Stroger administration continued to say little publicly about how he learned he had cancer, whether he has been taking any medication in the past 10 months, why he waited for surgery and whether there will be any long-term ramifications of his illness. "He's in good spirits," spokeswoman Ibis Antongiorgi said, adding doctors "expect a full and speedy recovery." And, Antongiorgi said, Stroger "is committed to being as open as possible," drawing chuckles from media, given the lack of information officially provided so far. That left commissioners delicately trying to express both sympathy and a sense of betrayal, as they have struggled to understand many of the moves Stroger has made since he took office in December and his public relations strategy. Stroger has struggled to develop trust with the public, press and members of the County Board and the handling of his illness hasn't helped. "It's a terrible mistake," Commissioner Mike Quigley said of the decision not to inform board members. Many of the commissioners endured similar treatment last year, as they and the public were repeatedly assured that Stroger's father, board President John Stroger, would recover just fine from what turned out to be a devastating and career-ending stroke. "They followed the same suit," a frustrated Quigley said. "It's just inappropriate." Still, Commissioner Forrest Claypool called that "a completely different situation," saying "the public was misled" about John Stroger, but that Todd Stroger's situation "is a private matter." Commissioner Tony Peraica, who lost to Stroger in November, said voters were entitled to know before that election that Stroger was battling cancer.
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