Toronto mayor Rob Ford exited substance abuse rehab more than two months ago, but another health crisis has the embattled mayor dropping his re-election bid.
Ford checked into Humber River Hospital "complaining of abdominal pains." A CT scan revealed a tumor in his abdomen. His pain persisted for over three months, but got much worse on Sept. 10, according to the Toronto hospital president Dr. Rueben Devlin.
"It is being investigated further and we need to determine exactly what type of tumor it is, and then we can decide on what type of treatment is required," Devlin said in a press conference. He also couldn't say whether the tumor is malignant or not.
An update on Ford's condition may not come for another week, until results from a biopsy of the tumor become available, according to a statement from Dr. Zane Cohen of Mount Sinai hospital in Toronto.
"Rob is in good spirits, and I just want to thank the well-wishers for all the calls that are coming in," his brother Doug Ford said during the press conference.
The recent health setback has caused the Toronto mayor to withdraw his re-election bid, hours before the final ballot deadline, according to The Guardian. His brother Doug Ford has decided to run for the post, and officially registered his candidacy for mayor.
Ford won't leave Toronto politics all together. He will run for city councilor in Toronto's Ward 2, Etobicoke North, the position he held from November 2000 to October 2010.
The controversial politico became a running joke in Canada and the United States in May 2013 when cellphone video surfaced of Ford smoking crack cocaine. The Toronto city council stripped him of his mayoral powers due to the video and other allegations of bad behavior, according to CNN.
Ford refused to back down. He wouldn't resign or go to rehab, but he changed his mind on the latter when a local newspaper reported another video of Ford smoking crack cocaine. He stayed in rehab for two months this past spring, and returned to office this past June.
He said he felt "ashamed, embarrassed and humiliated" by his actions, but also announced to the Toronto voters that he looked "forward to serving you for many, many more years."
