Former President Joseph R. Biden Jr., 82, was reportedly seen over Labor Day weekend in Delaware with a visible gash on his head, raising new questions about his health and physical condition just months after revealing a Stage 4 cancer diagnosis.
Biden, who has retreated largely from public life since leaving office, appeared outside a church service in Rehoboth Beach greeting supporters.
Cameras captured the former president with a noticeable wound on his scalp. His aides later acknowledged that he had undergone surgery for skin cancer only days earlier.
A spokesperson confirmed to NBC News that Biden had received Mohs surgery, a procedure in which surgeons remove thin layers of cancerous skin, on August 28.
The revelation came after photographs circulated of Biden with a bandage at the funeral of former Delaware Gov. Mike Castle in late August, fueling speculation about his health.
The former president’s age and repeated medical disclosures have put his condition at the forefront of discussion, particularly in light of his earlier announcement this year that he had been diagnosed with Stage 4 prostate cancer.
In May, Biden’s doctors reported that the cancer had spread to his bones, categorizing it as aggressive and incurable, though treatable.
At the time, Biden released a video message acknowledging the seriousness of his illness while striking an optimistic tone. “Cancer touches us all… Jill and I have learned that we are strongest in the broken places,” he said.
The latest disclosure underscores the significant health challenges facing the country’s oldest living former president. His aides have emphasized that he continues to receive treatment, though details about his long-term prognosis remain uncertain.
The Mohs procedure is typically considered routine, but paired with Biden’s advanced prostate cancer diagnosis, it highlights the ongoing difficulties of a man who, until recently, was still the standard-bearer of his party.
The news also comes as Democrats continue to grapple with the political legacy Biden left behind, one marked by division and economic uncertainty.
His health struggles serve as a reminder of how age and vitality increasingly dominate the conversation around the nation’s leaders. For many Americans, Biden’s visible decline reinforces doubts that had surfaced during his presidency about his ability to manage the demands of the job.
Republicans have long argued that Biden’s leadership faltered under the weight of both age and illness, leaving the nation weaker at home and abroad.
His current condition, underscored by the appearance of new cancer treatments and surgeries, will likely deepen those concerns.
While Biden’s team has been quick to downplay the latest developments, the images from Delaware spoke for themselves: a visibly frailer figure than the one who first entered national politics decades ago.
The bandages and scars now serve as public symbols of a man confronting mortality in real time, even as his party struggles to move beyond his troubled tenure.
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