The press release:
http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/news/APR1712.pdf
The headline's pretty much the whole story:
He sounds pretty brave, but he was very upset when his first spouse had radiation treatment for her cancer. Perhaps time has given him more perspective-- and the radiation-targeting tech has come a long way. But I'd certainly hate to be the tech who makes a bureaucratic error or a scheduling snafu.
Buffett will be 82 years old at the end of August. I wonder if any geriatric doctor would have recommended radiation treatment for anyone else this age. Of course it's a personal choice and he's very vigorous among his demographic, so perhaps it was an easy recommendation to make.
The annual meeting is on 5 May. I don't think that Buffett would consider prostate cancer a reason to step down. I don't think there's any succession procedure for temporary incapacity, although Buffett would act if he or Charlie Munger felt it was necessary. Shareholders are so split on having Buffett running the company that I couldn't predict whether the shares will go down... or even up.
I've been making a few percent selling Berkshire call & put options, but I'm not going to touch this situation for a few months. I don't see this as a buying or a selling opportunity, although a slew of pundits claim the stock is undervalued. If the stock goes up 10% then I'd probably sell a few shares to rebalance. If it goes down 30% then I'd buy a few more shares.
http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/news/APR1712.pdf
The headline's pretty much the whole story:
This is to let you know that I have been diagnosed with stage I prostate cancer. The good news is that I’ve been told by my doctors that my condition is not remotely lifethreatening or even debilitating in any meaningful way. I received my diagnosis last Wednesday. I then had a CAT scan and a bone scan on Thursday, followed by an MRI today. These tests showed no incidence of cancer elsewhere in my body.
My doctors and I have decided on a two-month treatment of daily radiation to begin in mid-July. This regimen will restrict my travel during that period, but will not otherwise change my daily routine.
I feel great – as if I were in my normal excellent health – and my energy level is 100 percent. I discovered the cancer because my PSA level (an indicator my doctors had regularly checked for many years) recently jumped beyond its normal elevation and a biopsy seemed warranted.
He sounds pretty brave, but he was very upset when his first spouse had radiation treatment for her cancer. Perhaps time has given him more perspective-- and the radiation-targeting tech has come a long way. But I'd certainly hate to be the tech who makes a bureaucratic error or a scheduling snafu.
Buffett will be 82 years old at the end of August. I wonder if any geriatric doctor would have recommended radiation treatment for anyone else this age. Of course it's a personal choice and he's very vigorous among his demographic, so perhaps it was an easy recommendation to make.
The annual meeting is on 5 May. I don't think that Buffett would consider prostate cancer a reason to step down. I don't think there's any succession procedure for temporary incapacity, although Buffett would act if he or Charlie Munger felt it was necessary. Shareholders are so split on having Buffett running the company that I couldn't predict whether the shares will go down... or even up.
I've been making a few percent selling Berkshire call & put options, but I'm not going to touch this situation for a few months. I don't see this as a buying or a selling opportunity, although a slew of pundits claim the stock is undervalued. If the stock goes up 10% then I'd probably sell a few shares to rebalance. If it goes down 30% then I'd buy a few more shares.