Retired king of Cambodia says battle with cancer going well [... and it's all thanks to communist China]

PHNOM PENH, March 3 (Xinhua) -- Retired king of Cambodia Norodom Sihanouk has reported that his battle with cancer is going well, said English-Khmer language newspaper the Cambodia Daily on Tuesday.

His treatment in Beijing, China, has successfully reduced the amount of B-cell lymphoma that was discovered late last year by his Chinese doctors, the paper quoted his latest statement as saying.

His "Lymphoma B cancer is smaller than before, following treatment by excellent doctors in Beijing," said the statement.

B-cell lymphoma, a cancer affecting blood cells crucial to the body's immune defenses, was first discovered in 1993 in his prostate gland, and despite treatment, it once recurred in 2005.

The 86-year-old former king will remain in Beijing for continuing treatment, according to the statement.

Cambodia's ex-king cites progress against his cancer

Monday, March 02, 2009

PHNOM PENH (AFP) — Cambodia's former king Norodom Sihanouk says he is showing progress in his most recent fight against cancer, according to a royal letter posted on his website.

The 86-year-old, who left for Beijing in July last year to receive medical treatment for other illnesses, said in late December that his Chinese doctors had found a new cancer in his body.

Sihanouk said in a letter dated February 27 that after treatment, "today I went to hospital to have it checked with modern equipment (PET Scan) and saw that this cancer has shrunk."

However he added that he needed to prolong his stay in Beijing for further treatment.

Sihanouk was first diagnosed with B-cell lymphoma, a cancer affecting blood cells crucial to the immune system, in 1993.

The cancer began in his prostate and recurred in 2005 in his stomach.

Sihanouk has suffered from a number of other ailments including diabetes and hypertension.

Despite giving up his role as monarch, Sihanouk remains a prominent figure in Cambodia and often uses messages on his website to weigh in on matters affecting the country.