Biden spokesperson says former president was never diagnosed with prostate cancer before last week

A spokesperson for former President Joe Biden on Tuesday pushed back on speculation that the former president was previously diagnosed with prostate cancer, and that his White House had hidden his condition.

Biden was diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer on Friday, which had already spread to his bones. The form of cancer, which is characterized by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5), is not untreatable but is incurable. The cancer does appear to be hormone-sensitive, which allows for effective management.

Biden spokesman Chris Meagher told reporters on Tuesday that the former president had never been diagnosed with prostate cancer before Friday, and said that the last time he was screened for the disease was in 2014. 

A well-known antigen test that is used to screen for prostate cancer was not included in Biden's most recent physical. But President Donald Trump is frequently screened for the disease, according to the New York Times, and his most recent medical report came back clear.

Health experts do not advise that men over the age of 70 be screened regularly for the disease, even though it is more common for older men. 

The development comes after skeptics suggested that the former White House hid the diagnosis because of how late the disease was diagnosed.

“It can take years to get to this level of danger,” Trump said Monday. “So it’s a — look, it’s a very, very sad situation, and I feel very badly about it, and I think people should try and find out what happened.”

Biden and his family are in the process of "reviewing treatment options" with doctors.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.