WEDNESDAY, Jan. 10, 2024 (HealthDay News) — U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin remains hospitalized while recovering from complications related to December surgery to treat prostate cancer, the Pentagon was announced Tuesday.
His doctors at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Dr. John Maddoxdirector of medical trauma, and Dr. Gregory Chesnuttdirector of the Center for Prostate Disease Research, said the 70-year-old is expected to make a full recovery once his complications subside.
“His prostate cancer was caught early and his prognosis is excellent,” said doctors at a hospital statement.
Austin first underwent minimally invasive prostate cancer surgery on Dec. 22 after a routine screening in November, his doctors said. The next day he went home to recover.
But on New Year’s Day, “Austin was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center with complications from the Dec. 22 procedure, including nausea with severe abdominal, hip and leg pain,” his doctors said. “The initial evaluation revealed a urinary tract infection. On January 2, the decision was made to transfer him to the ICU for close monitoring and a higher level of care.”
“Further evaluation revealed abdominal fluid collections impairing his small bowel function. This resulted in the backup of his intestinal contents, which was treated by placing a tube through his nose to drain his stomach,” the doctors said.
“He has progressed steadily throughout his stay,” added Maddox and Chesnut. “His infection has been cleared. He continues to make progress and we expect a full recovery, although this may be a slow process.”
While Austin is still in the hospital, he continues to perform his duties, the Pentagon said. His decision to keep his prostate cancer surgery private has raised concerns about transparency in leadership.
“Secretary Austin continues to recover well and remains in good spirits,” Pentagon spokesman Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder he said during a briefing Tuesday. “He is in contact with his senior staff and has full access to the required secure communications capabilities and continues to monitor the day-to-day operations of DOD worldwide.”
“Right now I don’t have any information to give on when he might be released from the hospital,” Ryder added.
Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer in men in the United States.
But the risk of prostate cancer is not equally distributed, Dr. William Dahutsaid the American Cancer Society’s chief scientific officer CNN.
Black men are 70% more likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer than white men and are more than twice as likely to die from the disease.
“It’s a higher incidence, but also a much higher mortality,” Dahut said. “So in general, around age 40, black men should talk to their doctors about screening.”
It is reassuring that Austin’s cancer was detected by a blood test and that he had surgery to remove it, Dr. Oliver Sartorsaid the head of the Urogenital Disease Group at the Mayo Clinic CNN.
“The worst prostate cancers are the ones that have spread and you don’t operate on them,” Sartor said. “So the fact that he had surgery, to me, is a relatively good sign.”
Sartor said the surgery Austin underwent — a prostatectomy to remove his prostate — reduces his risk of dying within the next five years.
“It’s probably 1% or less. It’s very, very rare for someone who’s had prostate surgery to die within the next five years,” Sartor said.
Meanwhile, serious complications from prostate surgery are “extremely rare.” Dr. Michael Stifelmansaid the chief of urology at Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey CNN. However, the fluid buildup described by the Austin doctors can happen in a number of ways, he added.
During a prostatectomy, doctors must cut and reattach the urethra, the tube that carries urine from the bladder to the outside of the body.
“If this reconnection of the bladder back to the urethra is not perfect, sometimes urine can leak out of the body and into the abdomen,” Stifelman explained.
Another way fluid can build up is after surgeons remove lymph nodes, if they’re not completely sealed, “sometimes you can have what’s called a lymphatic leak,” Stifelman noted.
Finally, any time tissue is removed from the body, fluid can leak out and cause a build-up.
Fortunately, all three complications heal with time, Stifelman said.
“He can expect a full recovery,” Stiefelman added.
More information
The National Cancer Institute has more on prostate cancer.
SOURCE: US Department of Defense, news release, 9 January 2024. Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, statement, 9 January 2024. CNN
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