Tony Snow's Cancer Returns
Tony Snow's Cancer Returns
March 28, 2007 -- White House spokesman Tony Snow is facing a recurrence of colon cancer.
Snow, 51, had surgery on Monday to remove a growth in his abdomen. Lab tests show that the growth is cancerous and that the cancer had spread. Doctors have found cancer in his liver.
"It's a recurrence of the cancer that he thought that he had successfully dealt with in the past," President George W. Bush says in a statement issued yesterday. "His attitude is, one, that he is not going to let this whip him, and he's upbeat," Bush says.
White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said yesterday that Snow and his doctors found the growth -- which was about the size of the tip of a pinky finger -- in a recent series of CAT scans, PET scans, and MRIs.
Before the surgery, Snow had been getting checkups every three to four months and said he felt fine, Perino told reporters.
The growth was located in the same spot in the abdomen as Snow's previous cancer, Perino said. Snow had his colon removed and underwent six months of chemotherapy in 2005 to treat the colon cancer.
Snow, whose mother died of colon cancer, had just reached the two-year mark of supposedly being cancer free, Perino said.
Perino said she did not know where Snow's new cancer had spread, apart from Snow's liver.
"He's a fighter," Perino said of Snow. "He plans to take this on with the advice of his doctors. They are in consultation right now, talking about an aggressive treatment to go after the cancer."
That treatment "will likely include chemotherapy but could include other things, as well," Perino said.
The American Cancer Society issued a statement from its chief medical officer, Harmon Frye, MD.
"The news that Tony Snow has suffered a recurrence of colon cancer, coming on the heels of Elizabeth Edwards' announcement last week that her breast cancer has returned, points to why recurrence is such a worrisome issue for cancer patients," Frye says.
"As with breast cancer, recurrence of colon cancer can be serious, particularly when that recurrence occurs in another organ. Still, when the disease recurs, cures can be achieved. This involves surgery combined with chemotherapy.
Snow, 51, had surgery on Monday to remove a growth in his abdomen. Lab tests show that the growth is cancerous and that the cancer had spread. Doctors have found cancer in his liver.
"It's a recurrence of the cancer that he thought that he had successfully dealt with in the past," President George W. Bush says in a statement issued yesterday. "His attitude is, one, that he is not going to let this whip him, and he's upbeat," Bush says.
White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said yesterday that Snow and his doctors found the growth -- which was about the size of the tip of a pinky finger -- in a recent series of CAT scans, PET scans, and MRIs.
Before the surgery, Snow had been getting checkups every three to four months and said he felt fine, Perino told reporters.
Colon Cancer Recurrence
The growth was located in the same spot in the abdomen as Snow's previous cancer, Perino said. Snow had his colon removed and underwent six months of chemotherapy in 2005 to treat the colon cancer.
Snow, whose mother died of colon cancer, had just reached the two-year mark of supposedly being cancer free, Perino said.
Perino said she did not know where Snow's new cancer had spread, apart from Snow's liver.
"He's a fighter," Perino said of Snow. "He plans to take this on with the advice of his doctors. They are in consultation right now, talking about an aggressive treatment to go after the cancer."
That treatment "will likely include chemotherapy but could include other things, as well," Perino said.
American Cancer Society's Comments
The American Cancer Society issued a statement from its chief medical officer, Harmon Frye, MD.
"The news that Tony Snow has suffered a recurrence of colon cancer, coming on the heels of Elizabeth Edwards' announcement last week that her breast cancer has returned, points to why recurrence is such a worrisome issue for cancer patients," Frye says.
"As with breast cancer, recurrence of colon cancer can be serious, particularly when that recurrence occurs in another organ. Still, when the disease recurs, cures can be achieved. This involves surgery combined with chemotherapy.
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