Just one day after he was forced to leave the forlorn Internet company for padding his resume, reports surfaced that ex-Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson revealed he has cancer.
According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, citing unnamed sources, Thompson told Yahoo's board and several colleagues of his thyroid cancer before resigning Sunday.
A source told The Journal that Thompson's decision to leave his position at Yahoo was in part influenced by his cancer diagnosis.
News broke last week that Thompson embellished his resume with a degree in computer science, when he actually earned a degree in accounting from a small Massachusetts college.
Thompson was hired in January to replace Carol Bartz, who was fired by phone last September.
In the revolving position at Yahoo, former head of global media Ross Levinsohn has been named interim CEO.
New CEO Boosts YHOO
Levinsohn had a triumphant stretch running Internet services within Rupert Murdoch's media empire at News Corp. before Bartz lured him to Yahoo in 2010. Levinsohn previously ran ad sales for Yahoo's Americas unit.Yahoo investors applauded the media veteran's appointment. Yahoo shares tacked on 2.2% in premarket trading Monday ahead of a nasty open for U.S. markets.
Levinsohn has significant credentials as a negotiator. Before coming aboard at Yahoo, he had a history of recognizing and acquiring an assortment of digital media companies around the globe. That is a striking comparison to Yahoo's last two CEOs, who had stronger backgrounds in technology than media.
"We view Mr. Levinsohn as well-equipped to lead the organization and to build off the company's core strengths - advertising products and digital media," said Spencer Wang, an analyst with Credit Suisse.
But Yahoo still faces a rocky road ahead.