Chavez to ‘get cancer treatment in Brazil’
Report comes amid speculation about Venezuelan leader’s health and news that he will have to undergo chemotherapy.
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| Chavez was in Cuba for almost a month for cancer treatment, which he later revealed in televised address [Reuters] |
Hugo Chavez, the Venezuelan president, will travel to Brazil for cancer treatment, a source in the Brazilian government has told Reuters news agency.
The Venezuelan President will come to Brazil’s Sirio-Libanes hospital, but no timeline has been set for his arrival, the source said on Thursday.
There was no immediate confirmation from Venezuelan government. Asked if Chavez would go to Brazil for treatment, a high-ranking government official said: “I don’t know.”
Last week Chavez said he may have to receive chemotherapy.
The Sirio-Libanes hospital is considered one of the best in Latin America and is renowned for its cancer treatment centre.
Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo had cancer treatment there and Brazilian Vice President Jose Alencar was treated there for years before he died earlier this year.
Earlier this month, the Venezuelan leader admitted in a television address that he had a tumour but had undergone a successful operation in Cuba to extract the cancerous cells.
This was his first televised speech to the nation, weeks after he was hospitalised in the Cuban capital, Havana, sparking widespread speculation about his health.
“They confirmed the existence of a tumourous abscess, with the presence of cancerous cells, which required another operation to extract the tumour completely,” he had said.
Barely two days after the speech from Cuba, Chavez arrived at Maiquetia airport outside Caracas as the country was preparing to celebrate the 200th anniversary of its independence from Spain.
Addressing his supporters from the balcony of his presidential palace, Chavez vowed to win the battle to regain his health.
He thanked Fidel Castro, the iconic Cuban leader, saying that the veteran leader has been practically his “medical chief” while recovering in Cuba. He said he will “win this battle for life.”
Chavez’s announcement that he had cancer shocked the country of 29 million people and upended the OPEC nation’s politics, which he has dominated for 12 years.
It raised questions about whether Chavez will be able to run for re-election next year.
Last month, Venezuela’s government postponed a regional summit, citing President Hugo Chavez’s health.
Ever since the 56-year-old leader was rushed into emergency surgery in Cuba on June 10, news about his health has been a matter of great speculation, and even his close aides have little clue about the seriousness of his disease.