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Chavez says latest surgery reveals cancer's return

Xinhua, March 5, 2012

• Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Sunday confirmed rumors that a third round of surgery in Cuba last week did reveal that the cancer he was diagnosed with last year had returned.

  But he said following the removal of the second cancerous tumor from the pelvic region there is "no suggestions of cancer" still being present in his organs and stressed that he is doing well in his recovery program.

  Chavez, in a televised speech recorded from a conference room in Cuba and broadcast on national television in Venezuela, also confirmed rumors that the surgery had removed a second cancerous tumor from the pelvic region.

  "There are no lesions that suggest the presence of cancer, neither locally nor in the close-by organs," said Chavez in the televised speech to the nation, where he enjoys wide public support from various sectors of the society.

  He also denied that he was suffering from metastasis, a condition in which the cancer would spread from the original organ to other parts of the body and make it more difficult to treat.

  Cuban doctors and official sources had said Chavez's surgery last Monday was to remove a 2-centimeter-lesion which was detected through routine medical exams last month in the same spot where Chavez had a pelvic cancerous tumor removed in June 2011.

  The Venezuelan leader said he expects to stay in Cuba for "several more weeks" while he is completing the initial phase of recovery, and expressed confidence that there were no signs of further cancer tumors, or lesions caused by cancer.

  In the video, Chavez sat next to Venezuela's Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro, Health Minister Eugenia Sader and his brother Adan Chavez who is currently governor of the state of Barinas, along with a number of other cabinet officials and family members.

  He said the recovery phase is implemented under "strict medical discipline" and will include several rounds of chemo-therapy

  Ever since he was first diagnosed with cancer, Chavez has not revealed any details about what kind of cancer he has been treated for.

  The 57-year-old Chavez, who is seeking to be re-elected for a 3rd term in the October presidential elections, has remained upbeat about his prospects of beating the cancer.

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