John McCain alive and kickin’

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) health was described as “very good” in a conference call held with three of McCain’s doctor at Mayo Clinic Arizona. Since 1993, McCain has had four melanomas removed, three noninvasive and one invasive. Dr. John D. Eckstein, McCain’s physician for sixteen years, was able to cite “ No medical reason or problems that would preclude Sen. McCain from fulfilling all the duties and obligations of the President of the United States.”

A 2.2 mm thick melanoma that had a 2 cm diameter was removed from the McCain’s lower left temple after it was found to be invasive in August 2000. Dr. Michael L. Hinni, the otolaryngologist that performed the procedure, said that the procedure necessitated a large wound, 6 cm by 6 cm. Hinni stated that the reconstruction procedure resulted in a prominent left jaw due to an absence of tissue and that this prominence is not evidence of a recurrence of cancer.

Other health topics discussed include four small kidney stones in McCain’s right kidney and McCain’s reduced range of mobility, a result of McCain’s imprisonment during the Vietnam War. McCain currently takes medication to lower cholesterol, prevent kidney stones, preserve potassium in the blood stream, and multi-vitamins. When McCain’s age was called into question Eckstein said “age should not be a limiting factor in this day and age.”