House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) revealed on Tuesday that he has been diagnosed with blood cancer.
“After a few days of not feeling like myself this past week, I had some blood work done. The results uncovered some irregularities and after undergoing additional tests, I was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma, a very treatable blood cancer,” Scalise said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“I have now begun treatment, which will continue for the next several months. I expect to work through this period and intend to return to Washington, continuing my work as Majority Leader and serving the people of Louisiana’s First Congressional District,” he continued.
“I am incredibly grateful we were able to detect this early and that this cancer is treatable. I am thankful for my excellent medical team, and with the help of God, support of my family, friends, colleagues, and constituents, I will tackle this with the same strength and energy as I have tackled past challenges,” he added.
According to Mayo Clinic, multiple myeloma cancer “forms in a type of white blood cell called a plasma cell,” which help the body fight infections by making antibodies.
“In multiple myeloma, cancerous plasma cells accumulate in the bone marrow and crowd out healthy blood cells. Rather than produce helpful antibodies, the cancer cells produce abnormal proteins that can cause complications,” the clinic’s website states.
Earlier this year, President Joe Biden had a skin lesion removed from his chest that was cancerous, though his doctor said no further treatment was required.
Biden’s doctor, Kevin O’Connor, said test results showed the lesion to be a common form of skin cancer called a basal cell carcinoma, the Associated Press reported. O’Connor said that “all cancerous tissue was successfully removed” during the president’s periodic physical examination.
This was a breaking news story. The details were periodically updated as more information became available.
