Jascha Heifetz Seriously Ill

Jascha Heifetz, one of the world’s premier violinists, is hospitalized “with a very serious illness” and undergoing treatment for a malignant tumor at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, a family friend said today.

The hospital declined to comment at the family’s request, Cedars-Sinai spokesman Ron Wise said. A family friend who spoke on condition of anonymity said Heifetz, 86, is “not hovering near death, but very seriously ill.” Born in Vilna, Lithuania, Heifetz started violin lessons when he was 3 and made his first public appearance when he was 7. By the time he was 16, he was recognized internationally as one of the finest musicians in the world.