Jill Biden has undergone surgery to remove cancerous skin lesions on her face and chest, while a third lesion on her left eyelid was also removed and sent for examination, White House doctors said.
Accompanied by the husband of the President of the United States joe bidenthe 71-year-old first lady spent more than eight hours in outpatient surgery at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
White House physician Dr. Kevin O’Connor confirmed that all cancerous tissue had been removed.
He said tests showed that the lesion in Mrs. Biden’s right eye and the newly discovered lesion on her chest were both confirmed to be basal cell carcinoma.
The lesion on her left eyelid was “completely excised with margins and sent for standard microscopic examination,” he wrote in the report.
Basal cell carcinoma is a type of skin cancer that develops in the basal cells, a type of cell within the skin that gives rise to new skin cells.
It causes pearly-white, skin-colored, or pink bumps on the body, especially on the face and ears. The first lady returned to the White House on Wednesday night, where her press secretary said she was “doing well and in good spirits.”
Dr O’Connor said Mrs Biden experienced “some facial swelling and bruising” following the surgery.
Mrs. Biden’s office announced last week that her doctors discovered the lesion above her right eye during a recent routine skin cancer screening.
The lesions removed from her chest and left eyelid were discovered on Wednesday.
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Dr O’Connor also noted that doctors recommended “very cautious” removal of the lesion above Mrs Biden’s right eye.
Basal cell carcinoma is as common as squamous cell carcinoma, with approximately 3.3 million Americans developing one of the two cancers each year, according to the American Cancer Society, where the primary risk is sun exposure.
The surgery was performed the morning after the first lady and her husband returned from a visit to Mexico City.
Mr. Biden accompanied the first lady to the hospital and completed some of her previous medical appointments since he became president.
“Today is about his wife, which is the focus of the president right now,” White House press secretary Karin Jean-Pierre said.
“It’s about the president supporting his wife of 45 years.”