Cancerous drama around the cardinal

Vienna. Christoph Schönborn, Archbishop of Vienna, His illness was declared publicly on Friday: "For that there are no rumors," he said on the sidelines of a press conference after the Episcopal Conference. "I have to undergo surgery against cancer, it's prostate cancer, is well curable," said the cardinal. Therefore, the 74-year-old will soon retire: "The month of May, I will disappear from the public.The public will survive well, hope me too."

Schönborn: "Prostate cancer is curable today"

Trust. Schönborn's chances of recovery are good (see box on the right): Fortunately, prostate cancer was recognized very early. It is one of the cancers that often develops slowly and does not always pose an immediate threat to those affected.

The cardinal was so very confident in his explanation: "This is not a very dramatic thing at first, because it is a prostate cancer, and it is fortunately, in most cases, today curable, "said the archbishop. Karl Pummer, head of the Graz University Urology Clinic, supports Cardinal's optimism: "The cure rates are over 90%," says Pummer in AUSTRIA.

Court of Audit. Schönborn's "cancer exit" took place after the presentation of the results of the Episcopal Conference, which also dealt with the enormous financial irregularities of the diocese of Gurk-Klagenfurt: "There will certainly be consequences," said the cardinal. He could also imagine in the future "a kind of audit office" for the Catholic Church in Austria, Schönborn said.

Karl Wendl

Prostate cancer: "The chances of recovery are very good"

Better chance of healing with early detection: Prostate cancer is the most common form of cancer in men. If the cancer is recognized early (as in Schönborn) and limited to the prostate, it can be eliminated by surgical removal of the prostate.

In the so-called radical prostatectomy, the prostate and seminal vesicles are removed. This procedure is now one of the most common tumor surgery treatments in urology.

The chances of a definitive cure are very good, even in old age. In particular, if the tumor can be completely removed ("R0 resection"): "The cure rate exceeds 90%," says Professor Karl Pummer, director of the university urology clinic in Graz, AUSTRIA.