Berlusconi's doctor confirms ex-Italian premier has leukaemia as he fights lung infection
Berlusconi was hospitalised on Wednesday in intensive care because of a problem related to a previous infection, but was alert and speaking, Italy's foreign minister said.
Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been diagnosed with leukaemia, his personal physician has confirmed. Professor Alberto Zangrillo, who works at Milan's San Raffaele hospital, signed off on a medical bulletin the media mogul has been suffering from the disease "for some time". He added the cancer of the blood cells was in a "persistent chronic phase".
Dr Fabio Ciceri, who is head of haematology, bone marrow transplantation and blood cancer at the hospital, co-signed the first medical bulletin issued since the leader of the Forza Italia party was admitted to the ICU at San Raffaele on Wednesday.
The update stated the current treatment strategy adopted for the former Prime Minister "envisions treatment of the pulmonary infection" as well as a specialized treatment "aimed at limiting the negative effects" of chronic leukaemia.
On Thursday afternoon, Italian news agency Ansa reported sources close to the former Prime Minister claiming Berlusconi's health condition has been improving when compared to the day before.
The report added: "While the situation calls for caution, the former Prime Minister is seemingly reacting positively to the antibiotics therapy chosen to cure the pneumonia he started suffering from a few days ago."
The chronic leukaemia he is affected by, they added, is not rare in people his age and is normally treated using non-invasive treatment.
Previously, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, who is also a leader of the party Berlusconi created three decades ago, had said the 86-year-old had been hospitalised because of an "unresolved problem" related to a previous infection.
Berlusconi has had a series of health problems in recent years, most significantly after recovering from COVID-19 in 2020. After being discharged from a 10-day hospital stay at the time, he told reporters that the disease had been "insidious" and was the most dangerous challenge he had ever faced.
He has had a pacemaker for years, underwent heart surgery to replace an aortic valve in 2016 and has overcome prostate cancer. In January 2022 he was admitted for a reported urinary tract infection.
Berlusconi had been to San Raffaele hospital, where his personal physician works, for a regular checkup for several days just last week.
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In a March 31 tweet after he returned home, Berlusconi thanked "all those who wanted to send a thought or sign of affection in these days".
He said he was already back at work "ready and determined to commit myself as I've always done to the country I love".
Since his latest hospitalisation, Berlusconi has received several public messages of support wishing him a speedy recovery across the political spectrum. Among others, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni tweeted "Forza Silvio", alluding to the soccer chant that Berlusconi turned into the name of his political party.
Berlusconi remains at the helm of Forza Italia, the centre-right party he created when he jumped into politics in the early 1990s, though the day-to-day running of the party has been left to underlings.
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Most recently he has made waves with a handful of comments about his old friend Russian President Vladimir Putin, boasting that the two had exchanged birthday greetings and blaming Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for the war.
Berlusconi's comments have irked the pro-Ukraine Meloni government, though just this week Tajani insisted that Berlusconi is committed to a peaceful solution to the war.
In January 2022, Berlusconi withdrew his name from consideration to be Italy's president.