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According to an announcement from his doctor, the 80-year-old President of the United States would have undergone a small operation in February, aimed at removing a carcinoma. The episode would however not be serious for his health, according to the statements of his team.
At 80, Joe Biden, President of the United States, is closely watched by his medical team. It was therefore during a routine visit on February 16 that cancerous tissue was detected by his doctor.
An innocuous operation of the lesion made in February
The press release evoking Joe Biden’s health is reassuring: the lesion detected is a “basal cell carcinoma” Who “does not tend to spread or cause metastases”, according to his doctor Kevin O’Connor, in a public account of the state of health of the leader.
This distinguishes it from “more serious” forms of skin cancer, such as melanoma, he wrote. As a final note, the doctor also advised that the location of the lesion had “well healed“. That’s about all we’ll know about this episode.
Basal cell carcinoma, a common and not very dangerous cancer if caught in time
The basal cell carcinoma suffered by Joe Biden is the most common skin cancer. By definition, it develops in certain cells of the upper layer of the skin (epidermis). It is usually a shiny papule that appears on the skin and grows slowly.
Basal cell carcinoma usually appears in people with fair skin who have been exposed to the sun and remains very rare in people with dark skin. Basal cell carcinoma develops on skin surfaces exposed to the sun, usually on the head or neck.
Tumors generally grow in the skin, at a fairly slow rate, which makes its management satisfactory. Treatment for basal cell carcinoma is almost always successful, and this cancer is rarely fatal. However, nearly 25% of the population having had a basal cell carcinoma develop a new basal cell cancer within 5 years. In fact, people with basal cell carcinoma should have an annual skin exam.