Warren Buffett Diagnosed With Cancer

Warren Buffett announced Tuesday that he has stage-one prostate cancer.

The famed investor broke the news to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders in a letter, informing them that he was diagnosed with the condition last Wednesday but adding that it "is not remotely life-threatening or even debilitating in any meaningful way."

Buffett said he will begin two months of daily radiation therapy beginning this summer but that, with the exception of cutting back on travel during that period, his normal routine would remain unchanged.

"I will let shareholders know immediately should my health situation change," the Berkshire chairman and CEO wrote. "Eventually, of course, it will; but I believe that day is a long way off."

Here's his full letter (via the Wall Street Journal):

To the Shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway:

This is to let you know that I have been diagnosed with stage I prostate cancer. The good news is that I’ve been told by my doctors that my condition is not remotely life-threatening or even debilitating in any meaningful way. I received my diagnosis last Wednesday. I then had a CAT scan and a bone scan on Thursday, followed by an MRI today. These tests showed no incidence of cancer elsewhere in my body.

My doctors and I have decided on a two-month treatment of daily radiation to begin in mid-July. This regimen will restrict my travel during that period, but will not otherwise change my daily routine.

I feel great — as if I were in my normal excellent health — and my energy level is 100 percent. I discovered the cancer because my PSA level (an indicator my doctors had regularly checked for many years) recently jumped beyond its normal elevation and a biopsy seemed warranted.

I will let shareholders know immediately should my health situation change. Eventually, of course, it will; but I believe that day is a long way off.

Warren E. Buffett