The office of former President Joe Biden said Sunday that Biden, 82, had been diagnosed with late-stage prostate cancer last week, but doctors are suggesting that, given the progression of the disease, Biden and his doctors likely knew of the diagnosis for years before now.
Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, an oncologist who served in President Obama’s administration and joined Biden’s administration as a COVID-19 advisor, said Biden likely had prostate cancer at the start of his presidency in 2021.
“This is not speculation. If you have prostate cancer that has spread to the bone, then he most certainly—you were saying—had it when he was president of the United States,” MSNBC host Joe Scarborough asked Emanuel in an interview Monday.
“Oh yeah. He did not develop it in the last 100, 200 days,” the oncologist replied. “He had it while he was president. He probably had it at the start of his presidency in 2021.”
Dr. Kevin O’Connor, a urologist who served as President Biden’s physician, gave the president a clean bill of health in February 2024, as he ran for reelection.
“Prostate cancer is the easiest cancer to diagnose when it first starts and to watch it progress to bone metastases,” Dr. Steven Quay, a doctor and pharmaceutical inventor who founded the Seattle-based company Atossa Therapeutics, wrote in a post on X Sunday.
“The PSA blood test shows the rate of cancer cell growth. For even with the most aggressive form, it is a 5-7 year journey without treatment before it becomes metastatic,” Quay noted. “Meaning, it would be malpractice for this patient to show up and be first diagnosed with metastatic disease in May 2025.”
Quay suggested Biden and his doctors knew of the disease years ago, but kept it hidden from the American people.
“It is highly likely he was carrying a diagnosis of prostate cancer throughout his White House tenure and the American people were uninformed,” he concluded.
Biden’s office claimed the diagnosis came on Friday.
“Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms,” the office said.
“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 continued. “While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management. The president and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians.”
Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, a former White House physician, suggested the White House doctors focused more on covering up Biden’s condition than helping the president recover.
“Sad and unfortunate and I wish the former president the best in his treatment of this cancer,” Jackson posted on X. “Care at the White House should be second to none.”
“Unbelievable this was missed, but the truth is, his physician was more concerned about assisting with the political cover up than providing world class medical care,” he added.
Dr. Howard Forman, a professor of radiology at Yale School of Medicine, posted on X that “It is inconceivable that this was not being followed before he left the presidency.”
“Gleason grade 9 would have had an elevated PSA level for some time before this diagnosis,” Forman wrote. “And he must have had a PSA test numerous times before. This is odd. I wish him well and hope he has an opportunity for maximizing his quality of life.”
The office of former President Biden did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Urology Group of Virginia, where Dr. Kevin O’Connor practices, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
