Minnesota Governor’s Office(ST. PAUL, Minn.) — The governor of Minnesota, Mark Dayton, has prostate cancer, he said Tuesday.
Dayton said that he learned of the diagnosis last week and that he might have surgery. He added that he plans to finish out his term and said, “I’m not in any pain.”
Dayton’s announcement comes one day after he collapsed while giving his State of the State speech.
Dayton, who turns 70 on Thursday, said on Tuesday he wasn’t intending to disclose the diagnosis until deciding on a treatment plan, but Monday night’s episode sped it up.
Dayton said he didn’t sense problems Monday night until right before his collapse. The governor said to laughter that the “speech was way too long … that was the problem.” He added, “next year it will be shorter.”
The governor’s chief of staff said in a statement Monday night that Dayton “quickly recovered” after fainting.
“Tonight, Governor Dayton briefly fainted after speaking for about 40 minutes. He quickly recovered, walked out of the Capitol, and returned home,” Chief of Staff Jaime Tincher said.
Tincher added: “EMTs joined the governor there, and performed a routine check. He is now spending time with his son and grandson.”
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