WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Top Republican Senator and chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, John McCain has been diagnosed with glioblastoma - a very aggressive brain cancer.
The tumor was discovered during a surgery to remove a blood clot from above his left eye last week.
On July 14, McCain underwent a minimally invasive craniotomy to remove the clot at Mayo Clinic Hospital in Phoenix, prompting Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to delay a vote on the new healthcare act.
Wednesday, the doctors treating him announced that the removed tissue showed malignancy.
McCain's doctors said he recovered from his surgery well, and his underlying health was excellent, allowing him to return to his family home.
McCain's office said he is in good spirits as he continues to recover at home with his family in Arizona. Further consultations with the Mayo Clinic care team will indicate when he will return to the Senate.
Additional treatment, including chemotherapy and radiation, could begin once the incision heals, possibly within a month. McCain was 'oriented, with good balance, and with no headaches or seizures,' according to his office.
McCain had earlier successfully fought cancer, melanoma.
President Donald Trump wished McCain 'Get well soon.'
Former President Barack Obama described McCain as an American hero and one of the bravest fighters he has ever known.
McCain, who was re-elected to his sixth term in the Senate in 2016, served as an aviator in the US navy before entering politics.
The Vietnam War veteran, who was almost killed in the 1967 USS Forrestal fire, was the Republican presidential candidate in 2008 against Obama.
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