Sunday Morning News

McCain's Doctors Say Skin Cancer Surgery Was a Success

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Turning now to domestic news, doctors in Arizona say it appears Senator John McCain's skin cancer has not spread. They are optimistic about his recovery after surgery to remove malignant melanoma.

CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen has more.

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ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After five and a half hours in the operating room, Senator John McCain's doctors declared his surgery a success to the great relief of his family.

CINDY MCCAIN: I have said many prayers this week, as you can well imagine, and I stand here before you right now to tell you that all of my prayers have been answered.

COHEN: The Senator's personal physician, Dr. John Eckstein, said Mayo Clinic doctors believe they removed all the melanoma on two spots, his left arm and his left temple. They also removed lymph nodes from his face and neck.

DR. JOHN ECKSTEIN, MCCAIN'S PERSONAL PHYSICIAN: We are pleased to let you know that the preliminary report on the lymph nodes, including the first draining lymph node, the so-called sentinel node, was clear without any evidence of melanoma cells. However, it will take several days to fully evaluate the removed surgical tissue.

COHEN: If it turns out the lymph nodes were not affected, that greatly improves McCain's prognosis. According to a statement by the Mayo Clinic, the tumor in the temple was at least 2.2 millimeters thick. A scale widely used by dermatologists indicates that when patients have tumors of that thickness, 76 percent of them are still alive five years later.

The Mayo Clinic's statement says it's too early to know if McCain will need further treatments. After surgery, melanoma patients are sometimes given chemotherapy and/or immunotherapy, drugs that boost a patient's immune system to fight the cancer.

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COHEN: Mrs. McCain spent the night here at the Mayo Clinic hospital in Phoenix with her husband. Now, he had hoped to be back out on the campaign trail for Republican candidates around Labor Day. However, his doctors say that depends on his condition -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Elizabeth, just give us a time frame. They said there are many tests ahead. When will there be more definitive indications on whether, what the extent of the cancer is?

COHEN: You know, Miles, they just don't know. They've sent those lymph nodes off to the pathology lab and it could be 48 hours. We've heard 36 hours. It really just depends. But it should be within a couple of days they should have some answers.

O'BRIEN: CNN's Elizabeth Cohen in Scottsdale, Arizona, thanks much.

You can learn more about Senator McCain's fight against skin cancer on our Web site. Check out cnn.com and you can also read about the risks, symptoms and treatment options.

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