In mid-February, Townhall reported on President Biden's delayed annual physical. The president's physician, Kevin O'Connor, said at the time that "Biden remains a healthy, vigorous, 80-year-old male, who is fit to successfully execute the duties of the Presidency, to include those as Chief Executive, Head of State and Commander in Chief."
O'Connor also said in his evaluation that the president continued to undergo skin cancer surveillance after previously having "several localized, non-melanoma skin cancers removed with Mohs surgery before he started his presidency," and noted "several small areas of actinic change on his face and head were treated with liquid nitrogen cryotherapy" while "one small lesion on the President's chest was excised today and sent for traditional biopsy."
On Friday afternoon, the White House released an update following the biopsy from Biden's doctor: "As expected, the biopsy confirmed that the small lesion was basal cell carcinoma," O'Connor reported. "All cancerous tissue was successfully removed," he continued. "The area around the biopsy site was treated presumptively with electrodessication and curettage at the time of biopsy. No further treatment is required," Biden's physician concluded.
#BREAKING: A skin lesion removed from President Joe Biden's chest last month was a basal cell carcinoma — a common form of skin cancer — his doctor said Friday, adding that no further treatment was required. -AP #BreakingNews pic.twitter.com/Hb5ERF5hQp
— Breaking 4 News (@Breaking_4_News) March 3, 2023
O'Connor said in his report that the kind of skin cancer he removed does "not tend to 'spread' or metastasize, as some more serious skin cancers such as melanoma or squamous cell carcinoma are known to do" but they do "have the potential to increase in size, resulting in a more significant issue as well as increased challenges for surgical removal."
President Biden has "healed nicely" following the biopsy and he "will continue dermatologic surveillance as part of his ongoing comprehensive healthcare," O'Connor said.
Reacting to the update regarding Biden's health on Fox News Channel, Dr. Marty Makary said the type of cancer Biden had removed "is probably the least concerning" kind to have. "It is almost more of a growth than it is a true cancer," he added.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
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