Representative Dave Camp, the powerful chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, disclosed Saturday that he had early-stage blood cancer but that he intended to undergo treatment while continuing his work in the House.
As the top House tax writer, Mr. Camp, 59, Republican of Michigan, is playing a central role in the deliberations over the deficit and the Bush-era tax cuts that are due to expire at the end of December.
In a statement, he said he had a “very early, highly treatable and curable type†of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, known as large B-cell lymphoma that will require him to have chemotherapy every three weeks for several months.
“In between treatments I will continue my work,†wrote Mr. Camp, who said he intends to remain as chairman of the tax-writing committee. “Thankfully, my health is otherwise excellent and my doctors and I expect a full recovery and cure. My family and I appreciate the s upport, good wishes and understanding we have received.â€
The House speaker, John A. Boehner, Republican of Ohio, issued his own statement on Saturday, expressing confidence that Mr. Camp, his friend and colleague, will recover. “He'll whip this with characteristic strength and grace,†Mr. Boehner said. “He is as tough and determined as they come.â€
Large B-cell lymphoma is considered the most common type of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, a cancer that resides in the immune system and is most common in men in their 60s, according to a recent publication by the Mayo Clinic Proceedings, which said the condition could be cured in more than half of the patients diagnosed.
Mr. Camp, a lawyer and former House staffer, helped lead Republican efforts in the House to repeal the health care law, and he has been among the top House fund-raisers, in part because of his critical position in helping set national tax policy.
In a recent interview with Bloomberg, M r. Camp said that he hoped to negotiate a bipartisan settlement for changes in the tax code that would not result in an increase in revenues or shifts in the burden among different income groups, a plan that conflicts with the stated objectives of House Democrats.
