Former Boston mayor Thomas Menino has been diagnosed with cancer for a third time.
Menino's first battle with cancer was in 2003, when he got a rare form in between his shoulder blades removed. Also in 2012, Menino underwent a minor surgery to treat the most common form of skin cancer. (Via WBZ-TV)
The difference between those first two cancer battles and this one is the cause of the cancer is still unknown by doctors and is already in the advanced stages. (Via WCBS)
According to the Boston Herald, the cancer was discovered in February and has already spread to Menino's liver and lymph nodes. Menino had his first round of chemotherapy in early March.
But Menino is staying positive. He told the Boston Globe in an exclusive interview, "My attitude really is, we’ll get through it. ... What else can you do?"
And Menino's longtime spokeswoman paints a picture of the former mayor in her official statement, "He is his usual self, cracking jokes and making people laugh, ... [He] will continue to fight as he always does. He is one tough cookie." (Via City of Boston)
Since leaving office in January after 20 years on the job, Menino has joined faculty at Boston University where he is in the midst of planning a symposium on the Boston Marathon bombings set for the end of the month. Despite his diagnosis, Menino says he expects to be at work Monday morning.
