Lesion removed during Biden’s exam was cancerous; no treatment needed

A skin lesion removed during President Joe Biden’s routine physical exam last month was cancerous, but after it was removed no further treatment is needed, the White House doctor said Friday.

In a memo released by the White House, Kevin O’Connor said a lesion removed from Biden’s chest and sent for biopsy during his Feb. 16 health evaluation at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center was basal cell carcinoma. .

“As expected, the biopsy confirmed that the small lesion was a basal cell carcinoma. All cancerous tissue was successfully removed,” O’Connor wrote. “No further treatment is necessary.”

Basal cell carcinoma, the most common form of skin cancer, is easily treatable when detected early.

Biden’s previous physical was in November 2021, when O’Connor said he was “fit for duty” and could carry out his responsibilities “without any exemptions or accommodations.” O’Connor gave a similar summary after Biden, 80, took his exam last month.

Lesions like those removed in February don’t tend to spread “or metastasize, as some more serious skin cancers such as melanoma or squamous cell carcinoma do,” O’Connor said, while noting that they sometimes increase in size and can become more difficult to remove surgically.

“The biopsy site has healed well and the President will continue dermatological monitoring as part of his ongoing comprehensive health care,” O’Connor added.

In January, First Lady Jill Biden had a pair of cancerous lesions removed that were also identified as basal cell carcinoma. O’Connor said at the time that the procedure was a success and “all cancerous tissue was successfully removed.”