Rhiannon Ingle
Joe Biden has clarified his cancer timeline following the baseless Donald Trump cover-up allegations.
In a statement released by his office, it was revealed on Sunday (18 May) that the 82-year-old Democrat, who left the White House in January, had an 'aggressive form of cancer'.
"Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms," the statement read.
"On Friday, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, characterised by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone."
Advert
The statement continued: "While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management. The president and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians."
According to Cancer Research UK, a Gleason score of nine means that the cancerous cells 'look very abnormal'.
It also means the disease is 'likely to grow quickly'.
In a follow-up post shared to X shortly after the statement, Biden posted a photo of himself with his wife, former first lady Dr. Jill Biden along with the statement: "Cancer touches us all. Like so many of you, Jill and I have learned that we are strongest in the broken places. Thank you for lifting us up with love and support."
However, it would appear as if both Trump and his son Donald Trump Jr have been finding it difficult to differentiate between Gleason scores and cancer stages - the latter of which can only go up to stage 4.
Both have also hinted at cover-up allegations, pushing theories that Biden's diagnosis was previously concealed from the public during his term of presidency.
Trump Jr was slammed for his 'disgraceful' reaction to Biden's diagnosis after he questioned on Twitter: "What I want to know is how did Dr. Jill Biden miss stage five metastatic cancer or is this yet another coverup???"
And speaking at a press conference about Biden's diagnosis earlier this week, President Trump said: "I'm surprised that it wasn't, you know, the public wasn't notified a long time ago because to get to stage 9, that's a long time."
Bear in mind, 'stage 9' cancer doesn't exist.
He went on: "I just had my physical. You saw that? You saw the results of that particular test. I think that test is standard to pretty much anybody getting a physical, good physical, and it takes a long time to get to that situation.
"Now, I think to get to stage 9, I think that, if you take a look, it's the same doctor that said that Joe was cognitively fine."
On Tuesday (20 May), a spokesperson for Biden confirmed that the former president had not received a test for prostate cancer, known as a PSA, for more than a decade before he was diagnosed with an advanced form of the disease last week.
"President Biden's last known PSA was in 2014," they said, meaning that he would have been in his early 70s at the time. "Prior to Friday, President Biden had never been diagnosed with prostate cancer."
According to the Mayo Clinic, a PSA test is a blood test that screens for 'prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in your blood. PSA is a protein produced by both cancerous and noncancerous tissue in the prostate, a small gland that sits below the bladder in males'.
Cancer touches us all. Like so many of you, Jill and I have learned that we are strongest in the broken places. Thank you for lifting us up with love and support. pic.twitter.com/oSS1vGIiwU
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) May 19, 2025
While health professionals consulted by Reuters had expressed surprise at the diagnosis due to the fact that most prostate cancers are detected at an earlier stage and that presidents undergo thorough health monitoring, others noted that it is not unusual to discontinue testing for prostate cancer in older patients.
This is because the test is less reliable in that age group and, additionally, prostate cancer has a much higher survival rate than most other cancers.
"It is very reasonable to discontinue PSA screening at age 72, regardless of health status, or significantly decrease the frequency of screening," said Dr. Scott Eggener, a urologic cancer specialist and professor of surgery at the University of Chicago.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact Macmillan’s Cancer Support Line on 0808 808 00 00, 8am–8pm seven days a week.