Councillor Rob Ford told reporters Thursday afternoon that surgeons will proceed with removing a tumour from his abdomen.
Ford emerged from Mount Sinai Hospital this afternoon looking tired and solemn, but the news for the former Toronto mayor was good.
Ford says chemotherapy has shrunken a large, 12 cm. tumour in his abdomen to 5.6 x 3.5 x 4.6 cm. – not as much as doctors had hoped but enough for surgeons to operate.
“I’m just lucky to be alive today,” Ford told reporters while thanking hospital staff, family and supporters for the outpouring of support he has received.
“I’m just lucky I’m getting another chance at life,” Ford added.
Ford said there will be four surgeons assisting with the procedure that is scheduled for May 11.
“It’s going to be approximately an eight-to-10 hour operation and I’ll be in hospital 10 to 14 days,” Ford said to reporters outside Mount Sinai Hospital.
“I’ll be out of commission for probably about four months,” he added.
Doug Ford, Ford’s brother and former Toronto City Councillor, stood beside his brother as he spoke to reporters.
“I’m feeling positive, I’m so happy for Rob and I just want him to get better,” Doug said to reporters. Doug Ford also thanked the hospital staff for the treatment his brother has received.
Rob Ford also says that another tumour in his back has “pretty well disappeared” thanks to the chemotherapy and radiation treatment.
Ford, 45, was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of soft-tissue cancer in September forcing him to bow out of the mayor’s race.
At the time, a doctor at Mount Sinai Hospital told reporters Ford had a tumour in his abdomen that measured 12 centimeters by 12 centimeters.
The former mayor, now the Ward 2 councillor, underwent several rounds of chemotherapy as treatment for pleomorphic liposarcoma, and told reporters in December that it had shrunk in half.
Last Friday, Ford had a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and CT scan performed at the downtown Toronto hospital.
