Joe Biden Undergoes Radiation Therapy for Prostate Cancer

Sun Oct 12 2025 18:56:50 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

Former President Joe Biden is currently receiving radiation therapy as part of his treatment for prostate cancer, according to his spokesman. This significant development marks a new phase in his ongoing battle against the disease.

Joe Biden, aged 82, has begun a five-week radiation therapy cycle as treatment for prostate cancer that has spread to his bones. Diagnosed with an aggressive form of the disease earlier this year, he is also undergoing hormone therapy. Biden's cancer diagnosis, which he publicly revealed in May, is categorized as high-grade, indicating rapid cell spread potential. Historically an advocate for cancer research, he has initiated efforts to mobilize resources to combat cancer mortality rates.

Former US President Joe Biden is receiving radiation therapy as part of his treatment for prostate cancer, his spokesman has said.

The spokesman also noted that Biden, 82, was undergoing hormone treatment, but did not provide further details.

The radiation treatment is expected to last five weeks and marks a new point in his care, according to a source who spoke with NBC News.

In May, Biden's office announced that he had been diagnosed with a more aggressive form of prostate cancer that had spread to his bones. This discovery was made after the former president reported urinary symptoms, leading doctors to find a small nodule on his prostate.

Biden's diagnosis was characterized by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone. This classification indicates a more aggressive form of cancer, although it appears to be hormone-sensitive, allowing for effective management.

The Gleason score of nine classifies his illness as high-grade, suggesting that the cancer cells could spread quickly, according to Cancer Research UK.

Biden left office in January as the oldest serving US president in history amid ongoing concerns regarding his health, which prompted him to end his bid for re-election late in his campaign.

His former vice-president, Kamala Harris, subsequently ran as the Democratic presidential candidate but was defeated by current US President Donald Trump.

A long-time advocate for cancer research, Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, relaunched the Cancer Moonshot initiative in 2022. This campaign aims to mobilize research efforts to prevent more than four million cancer deaths by the year 2047.

Biden personally experienced loss when his eldest son, Beau, succumbed to brain cancer in 2015.

In recent months, Biden has mostly stayed out of the public eye. In May, he gave his first interview since leaving the White House to the BBC, where he revealed that stepping down from the 2024 race was a difficult decision.

According to the American Cancer Society, prostate cancer is the second most common cancer affecting men, following skin cancer. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that 13 out of every 100 men will develop prostate cancer at some point in their lives, with age being the most significant risk factor.