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Sen. Durbin has small tumor removed, but prognosis appears good

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Durbin

* US Sen. Dick Durbin underwent surgery to have a small tumor removed from his stomach…

Durbin, the second-ranking Senate Democrat, underwent surgery in Chicago to remove a small gastro-intestinal stromal tumor (GIST) discovered during a routine check-up.

The Illinois Democrat’s doctors found no evidence of cancer, Durbin’s office said, and the tumor was able to be removed in its entirety using laparoscopic procedures.

“Senator Durbin went through today’s surgical procedure with flying colors and is resting comfortably,” said Durbin spokesman Joe Shoemaker. “He expects to be released from the hospital and resume a light schedule in the next couple days and should be able to resume a full schedule as soon as next week.”

* The prognosis appears good…

The tumor was not present in the lining cells of the stomach and was completely removed, with preliminary biopsy results indicating a favorable prognosis, they said.

Durbin spokesman Joseph Shoemaker struck an optimistic note about the surgery.

“This particular type of tumor is a rare form of stomach cancer, so it is cancer, yes,” he said in an interview.

But he added that the type of tumor that was discovered cannot be classified strictly as benign or malignant since they all have potential to become malignant. “However, small ones such as Sen. Durbin’s can often be completely removed and the patient then runs a totally normal course,” he said.

posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Aug 12, 10 @ 12:57 pm

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