Former President Joseph R. Biden’s newly revealed prostate cancer has ignited burning questions about whether his doctors, aides and Democratic allies covered up the grim diagnosis while he was in the Oval Office.
The speculation engulfed both the political left and the right: How was Mr. Biden’s cancer able to fly under the radar when he was receiving the highest level of health care as the leader of the free world?
Dr. David Shusterman, a urologist, said it was unlikely that Mr. Biden’s prostate cancer wouldn’t have been detected earlier.
“This is what I would typically see in a VA hospital where a patient hasn’t had medical attention in 10 years, presents to an emergency room with bone pain, and then they find it is metastatic prostate cancer,” he said on NewsNation.
“But in the modern age of medicine, especially the fact he was a former president, he had intensive state-of-the-art care, where we can see prostate cancer 10 years in the past. So, it is very unusual to hear that someone has prostate cancer when they are annually being followed up.”
The out-of-the-blue diagnosis that Mr. Biden had an “aggressive” prostate cancer that had spread to his bones only added to criticism that the Biden White House, top Democrats and the Washington press corps had covered up Mr. Biden’s diminished physical and mental health.
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“What I want to know is how did Dr. Jill Biden miss stage five metastatic cancer or is this yet another coverup???” Donald Trump Jr. said on X.
He shared a screenshot of a post from Dr. Steve Quay, who said that prostate cancer is the “easiest cancer to diagnose” and it is “highly likely” he had the cancer throughout his time in the White House.
Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, an oncologist, delivered a similar message on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” saying Mr. Biden likely had the cancer when he took the oath of office in 2021.
“He’s had this for many years — maybe even a decade growing there and spreading,” Mr. Emanuel said. “It is a little surprising to many of us oncologists that he wasn’t diagnosed earlier.”
A blood test for prostate-specific antigen, or PSA, is routinely performed during annual physical examinations for men beginning at age 50. Recent presidents, including Barack Obama and George W. Bush, are known to have undergone the test while in office.
“It is a little surprising that [Mr. Biden’s] doctor didn’t take it, and if he took it and didn’t report it, and it was elevated, that is another case of the doctor’s not being straightforward with us,” Mr. Emanuel said. “If that is true, that would be very troubling.”
Vice President JD Vance said he hopes Mr. Biden has a speedy recovery, but also said there must be a “conversation” about whether the former president was unfit for office.
“Whether the right time to have this conversation is now or at some point in the future, we really do need to be honest about whether the former president was capable of doing the job,” Mr. Vance told reporters.
He said Americans should have a “better sense of his health picture.”
“This is serious stuff,” Mr. Vance said. “This is the guy who carries around the nuclear football for the world’s largest nuclear arsenal. This is not child’s play. And we can pray for good health, but also recognize that if you’re not in good enough health to do the job, you shouldn’t be doing the job.”
Rep. Ronny Jackson of Texas, who served as White House physician during Mr. Trump’s first term, said it is “unbelievable” that the cancer diagnosis was missed.
“The truth is, his physician was more concerned about assisting with the political cover-up than providing world-class medical care,” he said.
Mr. Biden’s office shared the diagnosis late Sunday.
“Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms,” his 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.”
The statement said this “represents a more aggressive form of the disease,” but “appears to be hormone-sensitive, which allows for effective management.”
President Trump’s former White House chief strategist, Steve Bannon, said the diagnosis is mystifying and demands more answers.
“We need and demand a formal investigation,” he said Monday on his “War Room” podcast. “Go to Walter Reed and seize the records right now. Go to the White House physician’s office down there on the first floor, seize the records so they can’t lose them.”
“We have got to put the hammer down on this,” Mr. Bannon said. “If we are ever to be a constitutional republic again, it has to start here.”
Laura Loomer, a right-wing commentator, said on the same podcast that people owed her an apology for rejecting the claim she made in July that Mr. Biden was “terminally ill.”
“It appears that his wife and all the White House staff and all White House aides and the White House pysucians and medical staff at Wallter Reed engaged in a criminal cover up of fabricating medical records to hide the fact that Joe Biden had cancer and other issues as well, congnotive issues, for the entirely of his presidency,” Ms. Loomer said.
She said Ms. Biden should face charges for committing elder abuse.
“This, in my opinion, is the biggest political scandal to ever come out of the White House for any president in U.S. history,” she said.
