Biden Had Cancerous Skin Lesion Successfully Removed: White House Doctor

The physician to President Joe Biden, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, released a memorandum on March 3 stating that the president had a basal cell carcinoma skin lesion removed last month.

Biden’s skin lesion was removed from his chest as part of his comprehensive health assessment on Feb. 16 at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, according to a letter from his physician.

The tissue was sent for a traditional biopsy, and the results confirmed that the small lesion was basal cell carcinoma.

The cancerous tissue was successfully removed, and the area around the biopsy site was treated presumptively with electrodessication and curettage at the time of biopsy, and no further treatment is required.

According to the White House doctor, basal cell carcinoma lesions do not tend to “spread” or metastasize like some more serious skin cancers such as melanoma or squamous cell carcinoma, they have the potential to increase in size, resulting in a more significant issue as well as increased challenges for surgical removal.

The site of the biopsy has reportedly healed well, and the president will continue to receive dermatologic surveillance as part of his ongoing comprehensive healthcare.

Biden’s son Beau passed away from brain cancer in 2015 at the age of 46. Since that time the president has been clear that the fight to eradicate cancer is personal for him.

Throughout both his campaign and office, the president has made the fight against cancer a priority.

In February 2021, Biden relaunched the Cancer Moonshot, with the objective of halving cancer deaths over the next 25 years and improving the lives of caregivers and cancer survivors. Biden oversaw the original moonshot attempt during the last years of the Barack Obama administration.

The report on removal of the lesion came as a result of Biden’s first physical in 15 months, according to The Hill.

The physician stated that Biden’s nonvalvular atrial fibrillation, also known as an A-fib, test results for hyperlipidemia and gastric reflux are all “stable.”

Following the visit, O’Connor claimed that Biden “remains a healthy, vigorous, 80-year-old male” who was capable of performing the responsibilities of the president.

For the following two years, the president’s health is likely to come under rigorous scrutiny as he is anticipated to seek for reelection.

If he were to win reelection, Biden would be 82 at the start of a second term, and Republicans have long questioned whether he is physically and psychologically capable of performing the job.

Some Republicans, including 2024 Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, have suggested that cognitive testing should be required for some of the more senior lawmakers in Washington.