Former Florida State coach Bobby Bowden was secretly treated for prostate cancer before the 2007 season and has been in remission for four-plus years.

Bowden, who was forced into retirement after the 2009 season, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in February 2007, after FSU doctors gave him an annual physical exam. After undergoing a biopsy and ultrasound later that month, Bowden was treated with brachytherapy, a form of internal radiation, which places a radiation source inside or next to malignant tissue.

Bowden, 81, said he wanted to keep his condition private because he didn't want to deflect attention away from his team. He also was concerned that his health would be used against him in recruiting by rival coaches.

"I didn't say anything because of coaching," Bowden said. "In recruiting, if people find out you have some kind of problem, they're going to magnify it. If you have cancer, they're going to make it sound like you're dying. It would have been all over the country."