DealBook: Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan 1s Told He Has Throat Cancer

Photo Jamie Dimon, the chairman and chief executive of JPMorgan Chase, in Detroit in May.Credit Charley Tines/Detroit News, via Associated Press

Jamie Dimon, the chief executive of JPMorgan Chase, was diagnosed with throat cancer and will begin treatment shortly at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, he said in an email to the bank's employees and shareholders late Tuesday.

Doctors discovered the cancer at an early stage, Mr. Dimon said, noting that his condition is "curable." After a series of tests, the 58-year-old executive said, the doctors confirmed that the cancer had not spread beyond the right side of his neck and adjacent lymph nodes. Mr. Dimon assured employees at the nation's largest bank that the prognosis from the doctors was "excellent."

Mr. Dimon, who has held the dual roles of chief executive and chairman at the bank since 2006, has been atop JPMorgan longer than any other bank chief. His tenure, which began when JPMorgan acquired Bank One, has been marked by triumphs — the bank emerged from the financial crisis in better shape than its rivals — and by tumult.

The bank has worked to mend its frayed relationships with regulators — a painful reconciliation that cost the bank roughly $20 billion. In November, JPMorgan reached a record $13 billion settlement with a range of government authorities over its sale of questionable mortgage-backed securities in the lead-up to the financial crisis. The bank also reached a $2 billion settlement of accusations that JPMorgan failed to sound alarms about the fraud surrounding Bernard L. Madoff's Ponzi scheme.

JPMorgan has also been buffeted by the departure of several top executives. In the last two years alone, at least 10 senior executives have left JPMorgan. Most recently, Michael J. Cavanagh, once considered an heir to Mr. Dimon, announced that he would leave the bank in March to join the private equity firm the Carlyle Group.

In his annual letter to shareholders in April, Mr. Dimon stressed that despite the "constant and intense pressure," he was proud of the bank's resiliency and its resolve. Last year, JPMorgan earned $17.9 billion in profit despite the legal costs.

Mr. Dimon reiterated his faith in the leadership of the bank on Tuesday. He did not outline any plans to cede the reins of the bank while he undergoes treatment — a process that he said should last about eight weeks. In his note, Mr. Dimon emphasized that the company "will continue to deliver first-class results for our customers."

The illness of any chief executive naturally prompts questions about who is prepared to take over, at least for a little while. Mr. Dimon emphasized, throughout his note, though, that his treatment was "curable" and that he will remain immersed in the day-to-day operations of the bank.

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