(Bloomberg) — Sen. John McCain was diagnosed with a type of brain cancer that was discovered when doctors removed a blood clot above his left eye, his office said Wednesday night.
Tissue tested after the procedure last Friday revealed a glioblastoma, the statement said. Scans done afterward showed the cancerous tissue was removed and the 80-year-old Arizona Republican has been recuperating at home since the procedure.
"The senator and his family are reviewing further treatment options with his Mayo Clinic care team," according to McCain's office. "Treatment options may include a combination of chemotherapy and radiation."
Glioablastoma is an aggressive form of brain cancer, making up about 15 percent of all primary brain tumors, according to the American Brain Tumor Association. Patients typically undergo surgery first to remove as much of the tumor as possible, then are treated with radiation and chemotherapy to slow the growth of any remaining malignant cells that cannot be removed.
While there's been a wave of new cancer treatments that are changing the outlook for certain types of tumors like skin cancer and some blood cancers, the brain continues to be a difficult organ to treat, largely due to the blood-brain barrier, a membrane that protects the brain from foreign invaders, but also prevents many drugs from crossing.
The challenge is compounded by the mix of cell types in a glioblastoma, according to Susan Chang, director of the University of California, San Francisco's division of neuro-oncology.
"The cells don't all behave the same way, so even when you kill some, the residual cells can take hold and grow again, so you're fighting a constant uphill battle to get rid of every last cell," she said.
Median survival for adults with aggressive glioblastoma is about 14.6 months, according to the American Brain Tumor Association, and 10 percent of patients survive for five years.
Sen. Ted Kennedy, who died in 2009 after being diagnosed with brain cancer one year prior, had a malignant glioma, a category which includes glioblastomas. Beau Biden, son of former Vice President Joe Biden, died from a brain cancer in 2015. Though his family did not disclose what form of brain cancer he suffered from at the time, Joe Biden said in an NPR interview broadcast last month that it was glioblstoma.
Congressional Career
A Vietnam War hero, McCain has been in Congress representing Arizona since 1983, first in the House then the Senate four years later. He was the 2008 Republican presidential nominee.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement that McCain is "a hero to our conference and a hero to our country. He has never shied from a fight and I know that he will face this challenge with the same extraordinary courage that has characterized his life."
