Former U.S. president Jimmy Carter told church parishioners in his native Plains, Georgia, on Sunday that he is free of cancer, U.S. media reported. The 91-year-old Nobel peace laureate and global humanitarian recently had a tumor from his liver removed, only to find four melanoma spots on his brain.
Carter's address captured the attention of Hunter Thompson of Rolling Stone magazine. During the course of his speech, Carter noticed that Thompson had briefly left the room; he surmised that the self-proclaimed "gonzo journalist" had simply exited to refresh whatever adult beverage he was drinking that day. Thompson, however, scurried to the parking lot to retrieve a tape recorder so he could record what he believed was an extraordinary moment: a politician who dared to speak the truth.
Carter, 90, said the disease was discovered during recent liver surgery to remove "a small mass" and that the cancer "is now in other parts of my body."
The 90-year-old Carter left the country for the city of Atlanta in his home state of Georgia, The Carter Center said. The nature of his illness was not disclosed.
