Netanyahu successfully underwent prostate surgery, declared cancer-free

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu underwent a successful surgical procedure related to early-stage prostate cancer, according to an official medical report released by his office on Friday.

Diagnostic tests reportedly identified early-stage cancer without evidence of metastases. The procedure, which took place on Dec. 29, 2024, at Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem, focused on treating benign prostatic hyperplasia.

The 76-year-old Netanyahu was declared cancer-free in his latest annual health report, released on April 20.

The prime minister revealed that the publication of the health report was postponed for two months amid the Iran war due to concerns that the Iranian regime would use Netanyahu’s medical condition in its propaganda war. 

“I chose to delay the report’s publication so it would not come out at the peak of the war and be used by Iran for propaganda," Netanyahu explained in an official statement. "Today I can say I am in good health and excellent physical condition after treating a very early-stage prostate cancer that was completely removed."

Professor Aharon Popovzer, who heads the Sharret Institute at Hadassah Medical Center, led the radiation therapy for Netanyahu in cooperation with Dr. Mark Wigoda, the chief of the hospital’s radiation therapy unit, and Dr. Shraga Gors from the same institute. 

The physicians declared the treatment “fully successful.”

"A few months ago, as part of a routine check-up, we discovered a 0.9-centimeter mass that was found to be a prostatic adenocarcinoma," Popovzer said in an official statement, adding that the prime minister underwent "a comprehensive examination," and the team discovered the illness in "very early stages."

Popovzer explained that Netanyahu "underwent a modern, specialized kidney treatment at the Hadassah Medical Center two and a half months ago.”

He emphasized that further tests confirmed the disease has been fully cured. 

"We can say, based on the findings of these tests, that the disease has disappeared."

Following the successful elimination of Iran’s “supreme leader” Ali Khamenei and dozens of top Iranian officials, Iranian propaganda tried to score a success by claiming that Netanyahu had been killed in a missile attack. During the Iran war in March, Netanyahu mocked the false online rumors of his death during a meeting with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee. 

“Yes, Mike, I’m alive,” a smiling Netanyahu told Huckabee in an online video clip after the ambassador said that President Donald Trump had asked to check whether the prime minister was fine. 

Netanyahu has also faced other significant health issues. In July 2023, months before the Oct. 7 attacks, he was released from the hospital after undergoing a pacemaker implantation.

In 2022, Netanyahu, who was not the prime minister at the time, was hospitalized after feeling suddenly unwell during a Yom Kippur fast. 

"Former Prime Minister Netanyahu felt unwell while praying at the synagogue. He underwent a series of tests on site that came out normal and he now feels well," Netanyahu’s office said in an official statement.