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McCain to be released from hospital Friday

Sen. McCain
Sen. McCain, speaking to reporters outside the Mayo Clinic Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, on Wednesday morning, told them that he was "feeling just fine."  


PHOENIX, Arizona (CNN) -- Sen. John McCain was "resting comfortably" Thursday, one day after prostate surgery, according to a spokeswoman for the lawmaker.

The spokeswoman, speaking from Washington, said the Arizona Republican -- a presidential candidate last year -- was doing fine, and would be released from the Phoenix Mayo Clinic Hospital on Friday.

McCain spoke with Senate aides by telephone Thursday, asking about the news and the coming Senate agenda. "It's as if he never had the surgery," said one aide.

McCain's office announced Wednesday that the senator was "expected to make a full and rapid recovery" after he emerged from routine prostate surgery.

The surgery lasted roughly one hour and went off without a hitch, his office reported.

"The procedure was straightforward, with no complications," according to a statement released in Washington. McCain also had some bladder stones removed.

Entering the Mayo Clinic Hospital in Phoenix early Wednesday -- the day of his 65th birthday -- McCain joked he had found a "great way to have a birthday party," and admitted to feeling "slightly embarrassed" that his prostate surgery had received so much publicity.

The maverick Republican and former presidential candidate said he expected to be released within "a day or so." He said the health matter was not serious.

"This isn't anything in any way life-threatening," McCain said. "This is a benign situation."

McCain had surgery for skin cancer on his face last summer. "This isn't comparable," he said Wednesday.

Reached at the hospital, Cindy McCain, the senator's wife, was also optimistic about her husband's recovery.

"Certainly, surgery is never routine, but it's fine. This is much less serious than last summer," she said.

McCain plans to rest at his Arizona home over the weekend, and return to Washington next week.

The surgery, called a transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP), was not related to McCain's history of skin cancer. However, the prostate problem was uncovered during a quarterly cancer checkup on Aug. 17, according to sources. That checkup indicated that McCain's body is free of cancer -- marking the fourth check in a row to show him as being cancer-free.

Doctors did discover, however, that McCain's prostate was enlarged and was pressing against his bladder, causing bleeding and the formation of the bladder stones.

Surgeons, led by Dr. Scott Swanson, removed part of McCain's enlarged prostate and performed a cystolithopaxy, in which a laser is used to break up bladder stones so they can be removed without open surgery.

McCain had arrived in Arizona on Tuesday night after wrapping up a whirlwind, five-day trip through Eastern Europe. Cindy McCain said her husband enjoyed an early birthday dinner with his family Tuesday night.

-- CNN Congressional Correspondent Kate Snow in Washington contributed to this report.







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