Former Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter, who served as both a Republican and Democrat, is in the hospital, dealing with a serious, unspecified form of cancer, according to his office.
In a statement provided by the 82-year-old’s spokeswoman Kathleen Harvey, Specter said, “I’m battling cancer,”
The Washington Post reports.
“It’s another battle I intend to win. I’m grateful for all the well-wishes I’ve received. I’m looking forward to getting back to work, to the comedy stage, to the squash court, and to the ballpark.”
In the past, Specter overcame a brain tumor and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma twice, in 2005 and 2008.
Specter served in the Senate from 1981 to 2011. He was a moderate Republican until 2009, when he switched to the Democratic Party to avoid losing in the Republican primary. But he lost in the Democratic primary anyway.
After leaving the Senate Specter returned to practicing law, wrote his autobiography, and made the rounds at Philadelphia comedy clubs to talk about his days in the Senate and his impressions of former President Bill Clinton, former Pennsylvania Gov. governor Ed Rendell, and other political figures.
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