Yow, 66, is battling a recurrence of the breast cancer she was diagnosed with in 1987. The cancer went into remission and then returned in 2004.
The Hall of Famer sat out last week's game against Columbia during a five-game road trip in New York because of cold temperatures that makes normally tolerable symptoms worse.
She said she felt better after returning to North Carolina and that she hoped to coach against Jacksonville State, but issued a statement about three hours before tipoff Monday saying she would not be on the sideline. Yow said she made the decision after speaking with her oncologist, Dr. Mark Graham, and N.C. State athletic director Lee Fowler.
In October, she spent five days in the hospital after her body struggled to adjust to a change in her treatment, but said then that she feels her best during basketball season because "I have tunnel vision and I forget everything else about my body."
Yow ranks as one of the game's winningest coaches with 735 career victories in 38 years. She has also coached the U.S. Olympic team to the gold medal in 1988, and earned four ACC tournament championships, 20 NCAA tournament bids and an appearance in the 1998 Final Four during her 34 years at N.C. State.
