Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), who announced in November that he was undergoing treatment for a recurrence of prostate cancer, is weighing how treatment will affect his ability to serve out his term.
The Republican firebrand told Politico in an interview published Thursday that he believes he’s “plenty healthy enough” to complete his term.
But he’ll receive the results of medical tests in February that are expected to give a clearer picture of whether he’ll need treatment that may interfere with his legislative work, according to Politico.
“The decision I make will be made in conjunction with my family as to how I can best implement and impact things,” Coburn told the publication. “And if I don’t think I can, I won’t.”
The Oklahoma senator is in good spirits, however, saying the chemotherapy he’s undergoing now isn’t as bad as the treatment he went through previously — Coburn’ has also battled melanoma and colon cancer.
“I’ll be around probably when you’re not,” Coburn told a reporter, according to Politico. “That means I got a good prognosis.”
Coburn’s term is up in 2017.
