Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., talks with reporters on her way to the Senate floor for a vote in Washington on Thursday, June 17, 2021.
Caroline Brehman | CQ-Roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images
Sen. Amy Klobuchar revealed Thursday she was diagnosed with Stage 1A breast cancer earlier this year.
In a post on Medium, the 61-year-old Minnesota Democrat said doctors discovered abnormalities during a mammogram in February, which was followed by a biopsy that led to the diagnosis.
The cancer was removed during a lumpectomy, which was followed by radiation treatment, the one-time 2020 presidential hopeful wrote.
“Of course this has been scary at times, since cancer is the word all of us fear, but at this point my doctors believe that my chances of developing cancer again are no greater than the average person,” she wrote.
On ABC News’ “Good Morning America” later Thursday, Klobuchar said she had put off her mammogram check-ups during the coronavirus pandemic.
Even before the pandemic complicated access to medical facilities, millions of U.S. families had neglected seeking health-care services due to cost, surveys showed. More recent studies found many adults delaying medical screenings or other examinations due to Covid.
“I learned a lot through this year, as I know you know, about the importance of getting those exams, and also the gratitude for all of those that surrounded me — my family, my husband,” Klobuchar said.
“It’s something that no ones wants to hear and no one wants to experience, but it’s really renewed my faith in the people around me and in my purpose,” she said.
Klobuchar’s diagnosis and treatment came at a hectic and difficult time, both personally and professionally. She is chairwoman of the Senate Democratic Steering and Rules Committees, as well as a subpanel of the Judiciary Committee focused on antitrust issues.
Klobuchar described overseeing “a bunch of hearings” related to the American Rescue Plan, the $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill Biden signed in March.
“I had radiation two days after my Dad died,” she said, noting “his was a long goodbye” from Alzheimer’s disease.
“So that was going on at the time,” she said.
Klobuchar’s husband, John Bessler, recovered after being hospitalized with Covid in March 2020.
