THE family of Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella confirmed Tuesday, November 2, 2021, that the local chief executive is currently admitted in a private hospital due to another episode of pneumonia.
Labella's wife, Jocelyn, and sons Edgardo II and Eugene told the press that the mayor was briefly taken to the Intensive Care Unit when admitted over the weekend on indications that he was suffering from minor sepsis.
But the sepsis was prevented, Eugene said, and the mayor is now recuperating in a regular private room.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, sepsis is the body's extreme response to an infection. It is a life-threatening medical emergency.
"For now, the Labella family wholeheartedly asks for our continued prayers for Mayor Edgardo Labella that he may be able to recover fully, so that he may continue to serve the public," the family said in a statement.
It was Labella’s family’s first time to talk about the mayor's medical condition.
"We understand the need for us to be transparent insofar as the health of the mayor is concerned," Eugene said.
He said his father was diagnosed with prostate cancer 12 years ago and was operated on and treated. The mayor was already cleared and his cancer is under control, he added.
"In January 2021, he was initially admitted for an ear infection that had exacerbated, and eventually, we found out that he had sepsis or blood infection. He almost died at that point, Thankfully, true to the survivor that he is, he was able to recover," Eugene said.
The mayor has been hospitalized several times after the January incident.
In July, he stayed in the hospital for a few weeks and was also taken to the ICU because of his pneumonia.
"As we continue to monitor his health, we are also cognizant of his previous prostate cancer. His doctors have been constantly monitoring his prostate-specific antigen levels and gratefully, these remain at manageable levels," Eugene said.
Meanwhile, Labella's other son, Jaypee, said his father is not resigning from his post.
The mayor, Jaypee said, will continue to serve and see through all of his programs and projects upon his recovery. (PAC)