Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos on Monday announced doctors have established he has prostate cancer and will be operated this week.
In a televised speech, the president said “it’s a small tumor located in the prostate gland … that is not aggressive.”
Accompanied by his wife and doctor, Santos added that “the recommendation of my doctor … is to undergo a surgery to remove the tumor.”
According to the president, the surgery will take place on Wednesday in a hospital in the capital Bogota.
Following the operation, “I will stay in the clinic for a few days. I will, of course, have some physical limitations, but I will continue to exercise my functions as president.”
“With the help of God, the solidarity of my wife and children, with the good wishes and prayers of my compatriots we will successfully overcome this circumstance which I believe is nothing more than another one of those challenges we face in life,” Santos concluded his speech.