Major Joe Biden health update as former US President battles aggressive form of cancer

Joe Biden is undergoing a new phase of treatment for his prostate cancer, it has been revealed. The former US President's spokesperson said the 82-year-old is having radiation therapy and hormone treatment "as part of a treatment plan". Mr Biden has already been taking a pill form of hormone medication, but has now begun radiation treatment, which is expected to last five weeks.

The ex-president had previously said the cancer had "a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone". Mr Biden is said to be "doing well", NBC News reported. The Democrat politician revealed his condition earlier this year and said he was diagnosed with cancer after seeing a doctor about urinary symptoms. In September, Mr Biden also underwent treatment for skin cancer, known as Mohs surgery, and was seen wearing a bandage on his forehead.

In May, Mr Biden's office announced that he was diagnosed with an aggressive form of the disease, which had spread to his bones. "While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management," a spokesperson said.

Writing on social media at the time, Mr Biden said: "Cancer touches us all. Like so many of you, Jill and I have learned that we are strongest in the broken places."

A Gleason score of 9 means the cancerous cells "look very abnormal" and the disease could spread quickly, according to Cancer Research UK.

Mr Biden left office in January this year after four years in power. The oldest serving US president faced questions about his health while he was in office, leading him to end his run for re-election late into his campaign.

Kamala Harris, his former vice president, ran instead, yet lost to the current US President Donald Trump.

Prostate cancer is very common among men the same age as Mr Biden, yet it usually presents in a low-risk form. More than 52,000 men are diagnosed with the disease every year on average, which mainly affects men over 50, according to Prostate Cancer UK.

The risk of having the illness is higher in black men, or men with a family history of prostate cancer.