Joe Biden made his first public remarks on Monday morning about his cancer diagnosis, an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones.
“Cancer touches us all. Like so many of you, Jill and I have learned that we are strongest in the broken places. Thank you for lifting us up with love and support,” Biden wrote on social media, his first statement since his office reported the diagnosis on Sunday.
“Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms,” Biden’s personal office said in a statement. “On Friday he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, characterized by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone.”
Biden, 82, and his family are reviewing treatment options. The cancer appears to be hormone sensitive, allowing for effective treatment, according to his office.
“Joe is a fighter – and I know he will face this challenge with the same strength, resilience, and optimism that have always defined his life and leadership,” said Kamala Harris, the former vice-president who took over from Biden as the Democratic candidate in the 2024 election after Biden stepped down last July.
Barack Obama, who twice chose Biden as his vice-president, posted on social media on Sunday evening that “Michelle and I are thinking of the entire Biden family. Nobody has done more to find breakthrough treatments for cancer in all its forms than Joe, and I am certain he will fight this challenge with his trademark resolve and grace. We pray for a fast and full recovery.”
King Charles has also written privately to Biden to express his support. Charles, who is still undergoing his own treatment for an undisclosed cancer, hosted Biden for tea and talks at Windsor in July 2023, with a spokesman for the monarch saying the relationship between the pair had been “extremely cordial”.
Biden also attended Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral in 2022, and, in 2021, he and Charles, then the Prince of Wales, held a bilateral meeting during the Cop 26 summit in Glasgow. When Charles was diagnosed with cancer at the start of 2024, Biden sent his best wishes, saying: “I’m concerned about him. Just heard about his diagnosis. I’ll be talking to him, God willing.” Last week the king spoke candidly about his own cancer treatment, saying he would like to think he is on the “better side” of his journey.
Donald Trump, the current president, offered sympathy for Biden on social media, calling him “Joe” – in an echo of Biden calling him “Donald” after the assassination attempt against him.
But Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr posted a conspiracy theory about the diagnosis on social media, writing: “What I want to know is how did Dr. Jill Biden miss stage five metastatic cancer or is this yet another coverup???” (The cancer diagnosis was not “stage five”.) Congressman Ronny Jackson of Texas also made similar claims without evidence, saying “his physician was more concerned about assisting with the political cover up than providing world class medical care”.
The diagnosis comes as the Trump administration has cut federal funding for cancer research by 31%, according to a recent US Senate report.
