DELAWARE - Former President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, his personal office announced Sunday.
Dr. Mark Edney of Chesapeake Urology described Biden’s cancer as a high-grade case, scoring a nine on the Gleason scale — a system used to evaluate the aggressiveness of prostate cancer.
"That scale runs from a low of six to a high of ten," Edney said. "So you can see at a nine, President Biden is towards the top of that scale, just in terms of how the cells appear under the microscope."
Still, Edney cautioned that it is too early to make concrete predictions about Biden’s prognosis.
"In my 20 years of practice, I’ve seen men with Gleason nine spread to the bone with a rapid course," he said. "I’ve also seen others live several years with excellent response to treatment. We just don’t know where he’s going to fall on that spectrum."
Erika Narducci of Cancer Support Community Delaware emphasized the emotional and relational challenges that come with a prostate cancer diagnosis, particularly one that may affect sexual function.
"It can be very challenging, not just for the patient, but for the family as well," she said.
Narducci added that public awareness can benefit when high-profile individuals face such diagnoses. “We hope they do really well,” she said. “But we also hope they speak out—for better treatment, for screening. Prostate cancer can often be detected early with a simple PSA blood test.”
