Berlusconi is being treated for leukemia in hospital

According to media reports, former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is being treated for leukemia in hospital.

The 86-year-old has already started chemotherapy, the news agencies Ansa and Adnkronos reported on Thursday, based on sources close to Berlusconi. The doctors administered the first dose against “a form of leukemia” on Wednesday evening. The newspaper “Corriere della Sera” had previously reported on leukemia. Berlusconi’s condition was stable, it said.

The right-wing populist politician, who led four governments with interruptions from 1994 to 2011, was admitted to the San Raffaele clinic in Milan on Wednesday. Initially, there were cardiovascular and respiratory problems. Berlusconi has been in intensive care ever since. There were also reports of pneumonia. Official details were initially not disclosed by his party Forza Italia or by the family of the politician and media entrepreneur.

As can be seen in the photos, his children Marina and Luigi and his brother Paolo arrived at the clinic in the northern Italian metropolis on Thursday. His siblings, children and his partner Marta Fascina visited the ex-government leader in hospital on Wednesday. On leaving the clinic, the brother told journalists on Wednesday: “His condition is stable, he is a rock.”

Speaking on Italian television on Thursday morning, Italian foreign minister and deputy head of Forza Italia Antonio Tajani said on Italian television that Berlusconi’s condition was stable and that he had had a “quiet night”. “We hope the lion returns soon. He never gives up,” said Tajani. “We remain optimistic.”

Political associates wished the president of the governing party Forza Italia a speedy recovery. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wished him “a speedy recovery from the bottom of my heart” on Wednesday. “Forza, Silvio!” she wrote on Twitter. When, during a vote in the Senate, to which Berlusconi belongs, his name was called out with the remark “absent”, applause broke out among the deputies.

Berlusconi was only released from the Milan clinic last Thursday after a four-day stay. Officially, there was then routine investigations. According to reports, Berlusconi has already been treated for cardiovascular problems.

Berlusconi has been ill for years. At the end of 2020 he suffered from corona and pneumonia, years before that he had to be hospitalized with a urinary tract infection. In 2016, he underwent heart surgery. (oee/sda/dpa)