Over the weekend, former President Joe Biden was diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer.
Dr. Clay Marsh, chancellor and executive dean for health sciences at WVU, says while prostate cancer typically has good treatment options, this is scary news for the 82-year-old.
“Even though there’s good treatment, it’s not good news that he (Biden) has metastatic prostate cancer,” Marsh said Monday morning on MetroNews Midday.
Dozens of current and former elected officials took to social media after learning about Biden’s cancer, including former president and running-mate Barack Obama.
Michelle and I are thinking of the entire Biden family. Nobody has done more to find breakthrough treatments for cancer in all its forms than Joe, and I am certain he will fight this challenge with his trademark resolve and grace. We pray for a fast and full recovery.
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) May 18, 2025
Biden’s office announced that the former president’s cancer was aggressive, as it had a Gleason Score of nine. The Gleason Score is done by pathologists that look at biopsies of the prostate.
According to Marsh, the more the cancer cells are different than the normal prostate cells, the more aggressive the cancer is. Marsh also says that, generally, the more aggressive the cancer is, the more likely it is to spread. Biden’s cancer has reportedly metastasized to the bone.
Biden and his family have had their share of bouts with cancer. The former president had a skin legion removed from his chest in 2023 and had a benign pullup removed in 2021. Biden’s son, Beau, also died of brain cancer in 2015.
Marsh says genetics could be a factor in this case.
“As we look at former President Biden, who had the other problems, there could be a family predisposition, whether it’s a specific genetic risk factor or perhaps some sort of permissive effect from the immune system that usually monitors and takes out any cancer cells. That certainly could be a contributing factor here,” Marsh said.
Marsh also says that men need to monitor the changes in their body and not wait to get screened for prostate cancer.
“For President Biden, noticing that he had problems with his urination, that’s certainly one. Any blood in the urine. Any kind of back pain, flank pain, or growing pain could be a sign,” Marsh said. “In general, when men are over 50 years old, it’s a good time that they should start to look at potentially being screened with a digital rectal examination to feel for any nodules in the prostate and also perhaps a blood test. As we look at prostate cancer, this is really a very common cancer in men and generally men over 60 years old.”