A spokesperson for former President Joe Biden on Tuesday provided clarification regarding his recent "aggressive" prostate cancer diagnosis, stating unequivocally that Biden had "never been diagnosed with prostate cancer" prior to last Friday, according to The New York Post.
The spokesperson further revealed that Biden's last Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) blood test, a common screening method for the disease, was conducted in 2014, during his tenure as Vice President.
This announcement comes in the wake of Sunday's news that the 82-year-old was diagnosed with an "aggressive" form of prostate cancer that has reportedly spread to his bones. The revelation has surprised many within Biden's inner circle, with some expressing "befuddlement" to The Post regarding how the disease could have advanced to such a stage without prior detection.
The spokesperson's statement directly addresses mounting speculation surrounding the former president's health, particularly concerning any potential secret diagnosis during his time in office.
Dr. Kevin O’Connor, the White House physician and a longtime friend of the Bidens, notably did not mention performing a PSA test in his report following Biden’s most recent physical examination as president in February 2024.
The lack of recent screening and the advanced nature of the diagnosis have prompted discussion among those close to Biden. A long-serving aide mused that the decision not to conduct a PSA test might have stemmed from concerns about a "false positive" elevating PSA levels, which "would likely be elevated and cause a story, since a lot of older men have high PSAs that are false positives."
The aide added, "A blood test has a paper trail. They probably just didn’t do the test. I think it would leak if he had a PSA test they tried to bury."
A former Biden White House aide echoed the sentiment that a secret diagnosis would have been unlikely, stating, "Frankly, residence staff talk. It would have gotten out … Also, Doc [O’Connor] isn’t discreet. Yes, he’s a doctor, but he’s always chatting."
Medical guidelines from both the American Academy of Family Physicians and the US Preventative Services Task Force advise against routine prostate cancer screenings for men aged 70 and older. Biden turned 70 on November 20, 2012, two years before his last recorded PSA test.