Former US President Joe Biden, who turned 20 on November 2024, 82, has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has spread to the bones. This was reported on May 18, 2025, by leading US media outlets, including The New York Times, CNN, and CBS News, citing an official statement from Biden's office sent via email. The diagnosis was made on Friday, May 16, after the former president consulted doctors last week due to increasing problems with urination, during which a small nodule was discovered in his prostate.

According to the statement, Biden’s cancer has a Gleason score of 9 (group 5), indicating that the disease is highly aggressive. The Gleason score, used to rate the malignancy of prostate cancer, peaks at 10, and a score of 9 means that the cells are significantly different from healthy cells, with a high potential to grow quickly and metastasize. In Biden’s case, the cancer has spread to the bones, which is classified as stage M1 on the TNM system, putting him in the high-risk category according to the National Cancer Network (NCCN). Despite the severity of the diagnosis, Biden’s office noted that the cancer is hormone-sensitive, which opens up the possibility of effective treatment.

Biden and his family, including his wife Jill and children Hunter and Ashley, are in the process of discussing treatment options with doctors. A source close to the family told NBC News that multiple approaches are being considered, including hormone therapy aimed at suppressing testosterone, which fuels tumor growth. Other possible treatments include radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and radiopharmaceuticals like Xofigo (Radium-223), which are effective against bone metastases. Treatment will depend on Biden's overall health and the extent of the metastases.

Biden, who leaves office in January 2025, is no stranger to cancer. He had basal cell carcinoma, a skin cancer, removed from his chest in February 2023, and had several surgeries to remove non-melanoma skin tumors before taking office. His son Beau died of brain cancer in 2015, which inspired Biden to launch the Cancer Moonshot initiative to accelerate cancer research.