President Luiz Inácio da Silva (PT) said this Friday (12) that he is fully cured of skin cancer and that he has finished his 15th and final radiotherapy session. The PT member underwent surgery at the end of April to .
Since the surgery, the president has worn a hat in his public appearances. This Friday, in a ceremony at Palácio do Planalto, he removed the accessory while talking about the subject and quickly showed his head to those present.
“Today I went to the Sírio-Libanês hospital and finished the 15th radiotherapy. I had skin cancer, and radiotherapy is to eliminate any prospect [de alguma complicação]”, declared the President of the Republic. The PT member said he is happy “for the definitive cure”.
Lula made the statement at the ceremony in which he launched a .
The head of government’s first radiotherapy session was on March 25. At the time, the medical bulletin stated that it was a preventive procedure.
Lula maintained his appointment and travel schedule during treatment. Radiotherapy used to be performed in the morning, in Brasília.
Modern radiotherapy for cases like Lula’s consists of bombarding the treated area of skin with beams of electrons. Each session lasts a few minutes. Side effects tend to be localized and mild, such as redness in the irradiated area, skin irritation and temporary hair loss.
The lesion removed from Lula’s scalp was basal cell, a less serious and more common type of skin cancer.
Lula was discreet about his treatment before starting it, including with people in his personal circle. At least two of the PT’s decades-old allies only learned about the need for radiotherapy when the government announced that the president had undergone the first session.
The President of the Republic, who is 80 years old, will seek re-election in October. He told the electorate not to give rise to questions about his physical capacity to govern.
He has been showing off his exercise routine on social media and taking short runs in public, arriving or leaving an appointment. In 2025, he participated in a walk in honor of the Ministry of Education and .
