New York Governor Kathy Hochul disclosed she had been diagnosed with skin cancer on Thursday and would be undergoing a removal procedure this week.
Hochul told reporters her doctor discovered basal cell carcinoma on her nose during a routine checkup a few weeks ago, describing it as a “tiny, tiny speck on my nose.”
Basal cell carcinoma is a slow-growing cancer that is usually confined to the surface of skin, and doctors often remove it with a shallow incision. It is one of the most common types of skin cancers and has a high curability rate, especially when it is caught early.
The governor, 66, said she is set to have a removal procedure on Friday morning.
“I’m not going under, it’s a local anesthesia,” she said. “I’ll be back to work about an hour later, but there will be a bandage on my nose.”
While speaking with reporters, she urged people to get regular medical checkups to stay on top of their health.
Mayor Eric Adams expressed his support for Hochul in a post on social media following her announcement, writing, “”Our whole state is rooting for you, and we know you’ll be back to work fighting for us in no time.”
“This is an opportunity for me to talk about this because I want everyone to be so cautious, there’s about six million diagnoses a day from the CDC and I want to make sure that everybody is smart about this. Use your sun tan lotion, make sure your kids are protected,” Hochul said on Thursday.
