Tom Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor elected to Congress, is retiring due to illness.
U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Calif.), the only Holocaust survivor elected to the U.S. Congress, is retiring because he is suffering from cancer.
Lantos, one of the most powerful members of Congress and the chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a statement Wednesday he will serve out his term, which ends at the end of this year.
“Routine medical tests have revealed that I have cancer of the esophagus,” he said. “In view of this development and the treatment it will require, I will not seek re-election.”
Lantos most recently led the battle to substantially expand sanctions against Iran, a bill that passed overwhelmingly in the House and is under consideration in the Senate. Considered a go-to lawmaker on many Jewish issues, he also is a strong advocate of reaching out to rogue states, even Israel’s most dire enemies. He played a role in swaying Libya to give up its own weapons of mass destruction program in 2003 and has said he is willing to meet Iran’s leadership.
Congressman Lantos:
I just heard of your medical diagnosis and wanted to reach out to you as a former Esophageal Cancer patient and current three year survivor. My wife and I want to wish you a good fight and a speedy recovery.
This is a difficult and fearful time for you and your family, but do not think this disease a death sentence. Be aggressive with your treatment and positive with your attitude and you can beat back “the beast.” I need not tell you how to do this as a holocaust survivor.
In any case, you may wish to seek out the opinion of my crack medical team at the Jay Monahan Center in NY, headed by Dr. Mark Pochapin and featuring one of the nations’s best EC surgeon’s Dr. Nassar Altorki of Weil Cornell – New York Presbyterian. We can’t praise these Drs enough for the treatment, surgery and care I received that ultimately saved my life. My oncologist was Dr. Allyson Ocean, by the way. Top notch.
In addition, there is an online support group for EC at http://www.kathyscafe.com and this is connected with the Esophageal Cancer Awareness Assocition, a group that I was a trustee for.
My struggle with cancer returned me to elected office as a town Councilman (Freehold Borough, NJ). My fight was so inspirational that our Democratic Mayor reached across the aisle and returned a former GOP Councilman to the seat I vacated seven years earlier. You, too, can return to political office and do good for EC awareness, while you benefit your constituency in other ways. Please feel free to contact me, if you need any support in battling this difficult but beatable disease.
God Bless You.
Marc LeVine
Freehold, NJ