Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid underwent surgery for pancreatic cancer Monday morning.
“Today, Former Democratic Leader Harry Reid underwent surgery at Johns Hopkins Cancer Center to remove a tumor from his pancreas,” said Reid’s family in a statement. “His doctors caught the problem early during a routine screening and his surgeons are confident that the surgery was a success and that the prognosis for his recovery is good. He will undergo chemotherapy as his next step in his treatment.
“He is now out of surgery, in good spirits and resting with his family. He is grateful to his highly skilled team of doctors and to all who have sent and continue to send their love and support,” his family added.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Reid’s successor atop the Senate Democratic caucus, said soon after news of the surgery emerged that he had spoken to Reid’s family and offered his best wishes to his former Senate colleague.
“Spoken to family and it seems @SenatorReid’s operation went well,” Schumer tweeted. “We are all praying for dear Harry’s speedy recovery.”
The former Nevada senator left office in 2017 after 30 years in the upper chamber and was replaced by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.
Since leaving the chamber, Reid stayed out of the political scene until very recently. In an interview in late April, Reid warned Democrats against increasing chatter about impeaching President Trump, no matter their disagreements with him nearly a year and a half into his presidency.
“I’ve been through impeachment, and they’re not pleasant,” Reid told NBC News. “And the less we talk about impeachment, the better off we are.”
Reid still is not a fan of the president, whom he said is “not a nice man.”
“I had 12 hours of surgery on my face, broke all the bones in my face. What did he say? Did he send me a note of sympathy? He said, words to the effect ‘hope Reid tries another accident, gets hurt again.’ How about that?” Reid said, referring to his Jan. 2015 accident.
“He is not a nice man, and that’s an understatement,” he said.
