As questions swirl around President Joe Biden’s health following the announcement of his prostate cancer diagnosis, national media outlets quickly turned to one of the country’s leading specialists to help describe what the diagnosis means — and what comes next.
Dr. Geoffrey Sonn, a urologic oncologist at Stanford University with extensive experience treating prostate and kidney cancers, has emerged as a key medical voice weighing in on the president’s condition. Sonn has spoken to several major outlets in recent days, offering a sober but reassuring explanation of how advanced prostate cancer is typically managed and why the diagnosis, while serious, is not necessarily a near-term death sentence.
One of the most important distinctions Sonn emphasized is that metastatic prostate cancer, while not considered curable, is often controllable for extended periods of time. In interviews with outlets including Politico and The Los Angeles Times, Sonn pointed to major advances over the past decade that have transformed patient outcomes. New generations of hormone-based medications, he explained, can significantly slow the disease’s progression and allow patients to live productive lives for years.
Sonn contrasted prostate cancer with far more aggressive malignancies, noting that prostate cancer behaves very differently than cancers like pancreatic cancer, which often carry a grim prognosis measured in months. According to Sonn, prostate cancer patients can remain stable for long stretches with proper treatment, particularly when modern therapies are combined.
In comments reported by The San Francisco Chronicle, Sonn said the president will almost certainly be placed on hormone therapy designed to suppress testosterone, which fuels prostate cancer growth. Lowering those hormone levels can shrink tumors and delay further spread. While individual responses vary, Sonn noted that many patients live a decade or longer after a metastatic diagnosis.
The Stanford physician also highlighted how treatment strategies have evolved. What was once a single-line approach has now expanded into combination therapies that pair traditional androgen deprivation therapy with newer drugs that attack the disease on multiple fronts. Those advances, Sonn explained, have added years to life expectancy for many patients.
Sonn also addressed questions surrounding cancer screening and why Biden’s condition may not have been detected earlier. Speaking with The Hill, he noted that routine PSA testing becomes less common as men reach their late 70s and 80s. Medical guidelines generally discourage aggressive screening at advanced ages due to competing health risks and the slow-growing nature of many prostate cancers.
While Sonn is not involved in Biden’s personal medical care, his commentary has helped cut through speculation and panic at a moment when the public is hungry for clear, credible information. His explanations underscore a key takeaway: prostate cancer, even when advanced, is often a long-term medical challenge rather than an immediate crisis.
The attention on Sonn’s expertise has also placed a spotlight on Stanford Urology’s role in shaping national conversations about men’s health. The department has built a reputation for combining cutting-edge research with patient-focused care, and its faculty regularly contribute to discussions on major health issues facing Americans.
As the president begins treatment, experts like Sonn are reminding the public that medical innovation has dramatically changed what a prostate cancer diagnosis looks like in 2025 — offering realism, not alarmism, at a critical moment.