May 20, 2008...11:18 am
Sen. Kennedy has malignant brain tumor
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Doctors say Sen. Edward Kennedy has a malignant brain tumor; a condition discovered after he had a seizure.
Doctors for the Massachusetts Democrat say tests conducted after Kennedy suffered a seizure this weekend show a tumor in his left parietal lobe. Preliminary results from a biopsy of the brain identified the cause of the seizure as a malignant glioma, they said.
His treatment will be decided after more tests but the usual course includes combinations of radiation and chemotherapy.
The 76-year-old senator has been hospitalized in Boston since Saturday, when he was airlifted from Cape Cod after a seizure at his home.
His wife and children have been with him each day but have made no public statements.
10 Comments
May 20, 2008 at 12:54 pm
The banter on TP has entered the bizarre now. What grips me about malignant brain tumors is that practically everyone in my age group (60’s)who had experienced one was gone within 6-12 months. Radiology treatments are not an exact science yet and chemotherapy has some risks when the brain itself is involved.
May 20, 2008 at 1:01 pm
I just watched Senator Byrd break down into tears and stand there crying, unable to speak, just saying how much he loved his friend, on the Senate floor. I am still sniffling. This is just tragic.
May 20, 2008 at 1:09 pm
I am really sad about this news, but the News Channels are running this stuff non-stop, treating it like he already died. That’s wrong. He’s not gone yet..
May 20, 2008 at 2:00 pm
This is very sad news, indeed.
May 20, 2008 at 3:13 pm
nwmuse,
I have been sniffling since discovering this tragic news as well.
You all know miniblue has Epilepsy. She was at Mass Gen’l very recently where they found some “fuzzy” (their words) glial cells. They are not cancerous, but
“There but for the grace of God…” comes to mind.
It sucks.
May 20, 2008 at 3:49 pm
Wow, this is shocking news. At 76 years old, the treatment could be as deadly as the tumor, I would guess.
May 20, 2008 at 5:19 pm
One doctor was saying when this happens to a man his age it’s generally this type of cancer that’s really fast spreading. Apparently that’s how they misdiagnosed Arlen Specter because in older people that’s generally what it is. However, this doctor said the chemotherapy for this type of cancer is not as harsh as most of them are but the prognosis is worse.
One of the lady posters on the Joe Biden thread at TP had a tumor she had to have removed and she was just fine as did one of my daughter’s teachers.
So we should hope the doctors are mistaken like they were with Specter.
May 20, 2008 at 5:23 pm
I saw Senator Byrd too muse. It took me a long time to get over that today.
I got aggravated with McCain because he sounded like he was already gone but I got scolded for being “political” about the issue. My point was that if I was a Kennedy I would be really upset that they were talking about him like he was gone already.
May 20, 2008 at 6:53 pm
Folks, he is not gone as yet, but he has a terrific fight ahead. There are treatments in the wings, but a 7 to 8 year suspension in the advancement of medical science may cost this nation more than we can ever realize.
May 20, 2008 at 7:13 pm
Really Walt, science has taken a 7 year hiatus in this country.
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