VOA常速英语2007-Israeli Prime Minister Says He Has Prostate Canc

Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert says he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. VOA'S Jim Teeple reports from Jerusalem that Mr. Olmert says his cancer is treatable, and that it will have no effect on his job as prime minister.

Ehud Olmert called a news conference to say that while he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer his disease is not life-threatening and that he will continue to perform his job as prime minister.

Mr. Olmert says he will have an operation in the next few months to remove what he says is a microscopic¹ growth on his prostate, and that he will not need to undergo any type of radiation treatment or chemotherapy.

Israel's prime minister says he feels fortunate that his cancer was found early and that it will have no effect on how he performs his duties as prime minister.

Mr. Olmert's doctors, who also spoke² at the news conference, said it was likely that surgery will eliminate the cancer and that he has a 95 percent chance for a full recovery.

Ehud Olmert assumed office as prime minister nearly two years ago after Ariel Sharon suffered a massive stroke that left him in a deep coma³.

In the next few months he is likely to face intense pressure as Israel participates in a planned U.S-organized summit aimed at laying the groundwork for the eventual⁴ establishment of a Palestinian state.