Family tells Biden ally: 'He should be OK' after prostate cancer diagnosis

A longtime friend of Joe Biden said the family told him Monday the former president would be "OK" after being diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer.

“I talked to the family. He’s doing good,” said former Rep. Bob Brady (D-Pa.), who has known Biden for decades but has not spoken to the former president directly since the news. “They’re not overly concerned. They think this could all be treated and he should be OK.”

Brady said Biden’s family said “everything looks good” and “they’re figuring out what to do, how they're gonna treat it, and from what I hear and what they're saying and what I understand, it’s very treatable, which is great.” He acknowledged that the cancer is “maybe a little aggressive,” but “it doesn’t matter — he’s gonna treat it and he’s gonna be fine.”

Brady did not say which family member or members spoke with him, and an aide didn't elaborate. A spokesperson for Biden declined to comment.

Biden’s office announced over the weekend that the former president was diagnosed on Friday with prostate cancer with metastasis to the bone. His team said that it is “a more aggressive form of the disease” but that the cancer “appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management.”

Still, a stage-four prostate cancer diagnosis is serious. Dr. Chris George, a medical director of the cancer program at the Northwestern Health Network, told Reuters that prostate cancer cannot be cured once it reaches the bone, though it can be treated. But, he said, Biden could live for years with effective treatment.

The announcement of Biden’s diagnosis came amid widespread recriminations within the Democratic Party about Biden’s physical and mental condition during his presidency and before he dropped out of the presidential campaign last year. It also coincided with the release of a book on Tuesday arguing that an inner circle kept a diminished Biden shielded from the public. And just last week Axios posted audio clips of Biden’s interview with then-special counsel Robert Hur, in which he struggled to recall key dates.

Brady, 80, and Biden, 82, have been friends for more than 30 years, and their home bases are less than an hour apart. Brady said in 2024 that he talked to Biden almost every week, often about Corvettes. Brady has long called Biden “our senator, even though he’s from Delaware.” After the 2024 election, Brady slammed former Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign and said Biden would have performed better than her if he’d stayed in the presidential race.

Brady, chair of the Philadelphia Democratic Party, said Biden’s family told him the president would call him after primary elections in his state on Tuesday.

“I call him ‘the boss.’ They said the boss will call you after the election,” he said.

He added of Biden: “I love him to death,” remarking that he “didn’t want to bother me” before the primary.