Chicago aquarium's cancer surviving grouper dies

CHICAGO, Aug 24 (Reuters) A popular Queensland grouper named Bubba who became a hero to young cancer victims for surviving a bout with the disease, has died, the fish's keepers at Chicago's Shedd Aquarium said today.

The 154-pound brown-and-white mottled fish, dubbed the ''super grouper,'' began life as a female but changed into a male, surviving for three years after undergoing surgery and chemotherapy for a tumor that grew above his eyes.

He arrived at the aquarium in 1987 anonymously in a bucket, and was estimated to be 24 years old. He died on Tuesday, with results from a necropsy pending.

''Bubba overcame some incredible odds over the years, and that's what made him so special to us. His story of survival inspired so many of our guests and the public that followed him,'' said George Parsons, director of the aquarium's fishes department.

REUTERS VJ BST0112