CQ TODAY ONLINE NEWS
Updated May 20, 2008 – 2:14 p.m.
Sen. Kennedy Has Malignant Brain Tumor
By Kathleen Hunter, CQ Staff
Sen. Edward M. Kennedy , D-Mass., hospitalized Saturday after suffering a seizure at his home on Cape Cod, has been diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor.
Kennedy, 76, has been undergoing tests at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston since he suffered the seizure May 17.
“Some of the tests we had performed were inconclusive, particularly in light of the fact that the senator had severe narrowing of the left carotid artery and underwent surgery just 6 months ago,” said a statement issued by Dr. Lee Schwamm, vice chairman of the neurology department at Massachusetts General Hospital, and Dr. Larry Ronan, Kennedy’s primary care physician.
“However, preliminary results from a biopsy of the brain identified the cause of the seizure as a malignant glioma in the left parietal lobe. The usual course of treatment includes combinations of various forms of radiation and chemotherapy,” the statement said.
The doctors said that decisions on specific treatment for Kennedy would “be determined after further testing and analysis.”
Kennedy will remain at Mass General for several more days for the additional testing, they said. “He remains in good spirits and full of energy.”
The news of Kennedy’s diagnosis rocked his colleagues, leaving many close to tears. Tributes, prayers and wishes for recovery poured in.
President Bush said in a statement, “Laura and I are concerned to learn of our friend Senator Kennedy’s diagnosis. Ted Kennedy is a man of tremendous courage, remarkable strength, and powerful spirit. Our thoughts are with Senator Kennedy and his family during this difficult period. We join our fellow Americans in praying for his full recovery.”
Sen. Barack Obama , D-Ill., whom Kennedy has endorsed for the Democratic presidential nomination, called the news “heart-breaking.” In an interview on MSNBC he said, “I might not be in the Senate had it not been for him, because of the battles that he fought for voting rights and civil rights early in his career and then later on in his career.” He had talked with Kennedy over the weekend.
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton , D-N.Y., Obama’s rival for the nomination, said Kennedy’s “courage and resolve are unmatched, and they have made him one of the greatest legislators in Senate history.”
Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, declared, “Our thoughts and prayers go out to Senator Kennedy and his family. We hope and pray his doctors will be able to effectively treat his condition and that he will experience a full recovery. I have described Ted Kennedy as the last lion in the Senate, and I have held that view because he remains the single most effective member of the Senate.”
It was unclear Tuesday how advanced Kennedy’s tumor was or whether doctors would be able to operate to remove it.
Malignant gliomas are the most common form of primary brain tumors, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association. The median survival rate for patients diagnosed with moderately severe forms of malignant gliomas is three to five years; for those with aggressive forms, the median survival rate is less than a year.
Sen. Kennedy Has Malignant Brain Tumor
According to the Society of Neuroscience, the parietal lobe is in the middle of the brain, and plays a role in sensory processes, attention, and language.
The Liberal Lion
Kennedy, first elected in 1962 to the seat once held by his brother, President John F. Kennedy, is the Senate’s second longest-serving member, behind Appropriations Committee Chairman Robert C. Byrd , D-W.Va. He trails only Byrd and the late Sen. Strom Thurmond, R-S.C., on the all-time Senate tenure list.
Byrd broke down in tears on the Senate floor as he attempted to offer his prayers and support to Kennedy Tuesday. (Watch the CQ Floor Video.)
The senator is the last surviving son of Joseph P. Kennedy, patriarch of a remarkable clan that became something akin to the royal family of American politics. His older brother Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. was killed in World War II; John F. Kennedy was assassinated Nov. 22, 1963, and New York Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, who was running for president and had just triumphed in the California primary, was assassinated in early June 1968.
He was re-elected in 2006 to an eighth full term, carrying more than 69 percent of the vote.
Kennedy is the chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and a senior, active member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
For decades, he has been one of the most skilled and respected legislators in Congress, leaving his mark on virtually every major piece of social policy legislation of the past 46 years. A passionate advocate of the poor and disadvantaged, he has fought for civil rights, for expanded economic opportunity and for universal health care.
Rep. John Lewis , D-Ga., one of the giants of the civil rights movement, said Kennedy and his two assassinated brothers have left an indelible mark on the nation.
“He has been a fighter for civil rights, for voting rights, for the disabled community, for seniors, for working people,” Lewis said of the senator. “And I don’t know what the country would be like without the legacy of these three brothers.”
Kennedy has often taken on the hard, hidden work of negotiating compromises with Republicans wary of his objectives, gladly accepting half a loaf when more was out of reach.
Just two days before his seizure, he was working with Wyoming Sen. Michael B. Enzi , the top Republican on the HELP Committee, to work out a deal that could advance a stalled bill (
‘A Great Fighter’
Sen. Kennedy Has Malignant Brain Tumor
The news of Kennedy’s diagnosis broke during the Democrats’ weekly policy lunch. Kennedy’s colleagues, some of whom left the room visibly shaken, said they were deeply saddened by the diagnosis and were praying for Kennedy’s swift recovery.
Judiciary Chairman Patrick J. Leahy , D-Vt., who has served with Kennedy throughout his own lengthy Senate career, said, “I’m having a hard time remembering a day in my 34 years here when I’ve felt this bad.”
“Ted Kennedy has spent his life caring for those in need,” said Senate Majority Whip Richard J. Durbin , D-Ill. “Now it’s time for those who love Ted and his family to care for them and join in prayer to give them strength.”
Across the hall, Sen. Sam Brownback , R-Kan., offered a prayer for Kennedy during the GOP senators’ lunch.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid , D-Nev., and others stressed Kennedy’s determination in the face of adversity. “Anyone who knows Ted Kennedy knows he’s a fighter,” Reid said.
He said Kennedy’s wife, Vicki, had called earlier Tuesday, and reported that Kennedy is optimistic and has “a bounce in his step.”
“All of us know that Ted Kennedy is a fighter,” Reid reiterated. “We’ve heard his lion roar on the Senate floor on so many occasions.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell , R-Ky., said, “We are, in spite of our political differences, we are one large family here.”
Sen. Christopher J. Dodd , D-Conn., one of Kennedy’s closest friends, and Sen. John Kerry , D-Mass., his longtime colleague, joined Reid at the microphones. Both looked and sounded deeply shaken.
“Everybody needs to pull for him and his family,” said Kerry. “And remember this guy is one unbelievable fighter.”
The concern for Kennedy extended to his son, Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy , D-R.I., who has struggled with alcohol and drug addiction. The younger Kennedy underwent treatment at a rehabilitation facility two years ago after crashing into a security barrier near the Capitol during the early hours of May 4.
Minnesota Republican Rep. Jim Ramstad , who became Patrick Kennedy’s Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor after that incident, went to his office Tuesday to call his young colleague upon learning of Sen. Kennedy’s diagnosis. He said he had also talked with Patrick Kennedy over the weekend.
As the news of Kennedy’s illness raced around the world and the news media went into wall-to-wall coverage, Kerry made a poignant but probably futile plea.
Sen. Kennedy Has Malignant Brain Tumor
“We all need to give the family privacy,” he said. “We really need to try to do that.”
Molly Hooper, David Nather and Catharine Richert contributed to this story.
First posted May 20, 2008 1:40 p.m.
Comments
I find it odd that all major news blogs will not allow anything bad to be said about Ted Kennedy. But I am going to say something anyway--I find it hypocritical of him to be given the best medical care, being whisked away in helicopters inorder to avoid long waiting hours in an ER and to basically say to the health care work he has apparently done over the years, "who cares, I actually need help now and I can't be kept waiting on an HMO type system!" I honestly feel he should be put through the motions any typical American would have to go through in this situation. I personally have had eleven brain surgeries for my tumor, but some of them were cancelled because of my lack of health coverage and at other times business office representatives would come knocking on my ICU door demanding 400,000 dollars for unpaid neurosurgery bills. I was shunted around and around, and had to wait and wait to get MRIs, to get admitted, to get diagnosed, to get a biopsy, and this guy gets diagnosed in 48 hours??? Not right Ted! Not at all! http://www.theidaexpress.com
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