A leading Spanish gastroenterologist who traveled to Cuba to examine Fidel Castro reported Tuesday that the 80-year-old leader has no malignant illness and is not suffering from cancer.
Jose Luis Garcia Sabrido, who heads the surgery unit at a major Madrid hospital, told reporters that Castro is recovering slowly but steadily and requires no additional surgery. The Cuban leader's condition was described as stemming from a benign ailment complicated by secondary problems.
Castro has not appeared in public in five months, since undergoing intestinal surgery in late July. His absence from a 2 December military parade and from the National Assembly's final session of the year heightened public speculation about his true condition.
Garcia Sabrido said Castro is eager to return to work but that doctors have not permitted it, and praised what he called the leader's strong mental engagement. Cuba's government has treated details of Castro's health as a state secret, with his brother Raul serving as interim president. Reports also indicated Castro was too ill to meet Colombian author Gabriel Garcia Marquez, who spent nearly a month on the island.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in December 2006, in its own words.