Good morning. I was diagnosed yesterday with a — with
prostate cancer. It’s a treatable form of prostate cancer. It was diagnosed at an early stage. It came about as a result of taking a PSA test about 2 1/2 weeks ago. The PSA was elevated.
So I took antibiotics for a while. Took the PSA test again. It
remained elevated, so I went in for a biopsy yesterday, and the
biopsy revealed that several of the samples, thank goodness not
all and not most, had indications of cancer.
And, therefore, it’s at a very, very early stage of the
disease. It is also at a very early stage of determining what to
do about it. But since — since yesterday when I went to Mount
Sinai a reporter saw me going in and figured out I was there for
a prostate test, I thought it would be better to reveal what I
know of it, which is what the doctor told me last night and over
the next week, maybe two weeks maybe, maybe 2 1/2 or three
weeks, I will figure out with my doctor and other doctors what
the best and optimum form of treatment will be.
Obviously, the bad news is that there’s cancer and the good
news is that there are lots of possible options, and it’s going
to take a while to determine which option is the best one to
bring about a complete cure.
And I would — I’ll answer some questions about it. We’re
still at the stage where — normally somebody would reveal this
a week or two from now when you were — you know not only
diagnosed with it, but you had worked out with your doctor or
whatever doctors you consult with the form of treatment that you
are going to have for it. And I haven’t had the opportunity to
do that yet.
Excerpts from the question and answer period immediately following speech:
Q: We can appreciate that this is early, but can you
at least tell us what you think or how, if at all, this affects
the Senate race?
A: I have no idea. I mean, I think in fairness to
me, to the Senate race, to the Republican Party, to all the
parties and everybody else, you need some time to think about
it, and I really need the know what the course of treatment is
going to be before I can evaluate it. So the answer is, I guess
the same answer about the Senate race that I would have the
course of treatment: I don’t know the answer to that yet.
I hope that it would be able to run. But the choice that I
will make about treatment is going to be contingent upon the
treatment that gives me the best opportunity to have a full and
complete cure. And then, after I determine that, then I will
figure out that it makes sense to run this year or doesn’t it or
whatever.
Q: In the short run does this preclude anything, for
example, Buffalo tomorrow.
A: The only thing that it might preclude is I have to
take a few more treatments in order to figure out the best form
of treatment. And you know, I may have to reschedule a few
things to make sure that I get that treatment.
Q: Can you discuss a little bit about some of the
options available for the surgery, chemotherapy?
A: Yes, I can. The options are — the options are —
the options are the same for everybody. So they are not very
different. The options are radiation, hormones, seeds (ph),
which is a form of radiation or operation depending on what you
think gives you the best chance of success in curing the
disease, or what combination of those things and in what order
that you want to do it.
As you know, doctors have very different views of this and
the reason that I am going to take a week or two is you have to
evaluate it. You have to evaluate all of those difference
options and put them together. There is no reason, which I
guess is also good news, there is no reason for me to have
emergency treatment, I am not going to have treatment tomorrow
or the next day or the day after. At the same time, there is
also no reason to extend it, and it wouldn’t be a good idea to
extend it for months. So I will decide within the next 2-3
week.
Q: Mr. Mayor, how are you feeling?
A: I feel great. Well, aside from — I can’t say I
feel absolutely great, I mean I had the biopsy yesterday. That
creates a few little pains that you would rather not have, but
it is well worth it in light of the fact that you need to have
it done. But I mean, I’m in very good health. My heart is
fine. My blood pressure is low. I’m in great shape.
Q: Did the sudden developments make you think about
your dad?
A: Yes, well, my father had prostate cancer, which is
the reason why I went and got tested for it. Well, sure, I
mean, you always, but the chance of — this is what I told, I am
repeating what I am sure you are going to have 1,000 doctors
analyze, the chance of getting prostate cancer if you have a
history of it in your family is only about 10 percent greater
than it is for anyone else. So that may or may not have
something to do it with it.
But you know , my father — my father had prostate cancer 30
years ago, when the treatments didn’t exist, and when you could
only really catch it at a much later stage because they didn’t
have PSA tests. They had only physical examinations, and a
physical a examination would not have revealed this form of
cancer.
So what he had was much more advanced than what I dealt with.
And he died at 73 years old.
Q: Are there any circumstances under which you would
drop from the Senate rice?
A: I don’t think it’s — I don’t think it’s fair to
answer questions about the Senate race right now. I think that
my focus right now has to be on how to figure out the best form
of treatment, and then after I decide that, and get a while to
absorb this, to figure out, you know, should I do it? Would I
be able to do it the right way? I hope that’s the case. I
think it would be unfair to give an answer right now. And I
don’t even have an indication at this point. I think I should
take a little time.
Q: Are you going to make your physician available to
maybe answer some more questions …
A: Not yet. Yeah. When we get through the process
of finishing up, deciding on exactly what form of treatment, I
would be more than happy to do that. Right now, his
concentration should be on, looking at tests yesterday, figuring
out the other tests we have to do. I’ve already had probably
more advice than you need to have on this just in the last two
hours of people who have been through it and been told this is
the best form of treatment, and then been told just the
opposite. Something else is the best form of treatment. That’s — rather — that’s where I need the doctor to concentrate on.
Q: As far as aggressive treatment, do you know how
long that would take, over what period of time you might have to
take time off and discuss that at all?
A: Probably too early to discuss it. There are
different forms of treatment. They extend over different
periods of time. And I think it probably too early to discuss
it. I mean, would I to take off time off from the job or from
running or whatever? Yes, probably, sure. I mean, I don’t
think significant, I think like months and months, but some
forms of treatments would require taking some time off.
Q: Treatable form, is there a technical name for the
form?
A: It is contained within the prostate and appears to
be a form of cancer that they’ve had a lot of success in curing.
That the treatment modalities that I mentioned have all had
success in curing this kind of cancer at a pretty high rate. So
that is the best way to do it.
