Sen. Bob Casey has surgery for prostate cancer, and isn’t expected to need further treatment

Sen. Bob Casey will take time to recover, his office said, but is expected to resume his work in the Senate. He is widely expected to announce a reelection bid later this year.

Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.) speaks at an event with President Joe Biden at the Arnaud C. Marts Center on the campus of Wilkes University on Aug. 30 in Wilkes-Barre.Read moreMatt Slocum / AP

by Jonathan Tamari

Published Feb. 14, 2023, 6:20 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON — Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.) had surgery for prostate cancer Tuesday and is not expected to require further treatment, his office said in a statement.

He is expected to return to a “normal schedule,” his office said, after an unspecified period of recovery.

“This afternoon, Senator Casey underwent scheduled surgery for prostate cancer. His doctor reports that, as expected, the procedure went well and he confirmed that the Senator should not require further treatment,” said Casey spokesperson Mairéad Lynn. “Senator Casey and his family appreciate the well-wishes and extraordinary support from every corner of the Commonwealth, and he looks forward to getting back to a normal schedule after a period of rest and recovery.”

Casey, 62, announced in early January that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer, but said then he had an “excellent prognosis” and would be able to continue his work in the Senate with “minimal disruption.”

He is widely expected to launch a bid for a fourth term later this year, ahead of the 2024 elections, and Democrats are hoping the well-established senator can help them hold a potentially competitive seat in the narrowly divided chamber.

Casey’s office has not said how long he expects to be out of work, but next week the Senate has a recess, giving him a window to recover when there are no votes in Washington.

Casey’s surgery comes just days after Pennsylvania’s other senator, fellow Democrat John Fetterman, spent two nights in a hospital getting treated and tested after, according to aides, feeling light-headed at a Democratic retreat. Fetterman, who had a near-fatal stroke in May, returned to the Senate on Monday and resumed his work there.