Empress Emerita Michiko of Japan has been discharged from the University of Tokyo Hospital yesterday, just two days after undergoing successful breast cancer surgery, the Imperial Household Agency announced.
Empress Michiko underwent a partial mastectomy to remove the cancerous cells while preserving the breast. The operation was performed by staff from the Shizuoka Cancer Center and the University of Tokyo Hospital. She was soon able to walk around her room and her appetite returned quickly. Her husband, Emperor Emeritus Akihito thanked the head of the hospital and the doctors who performed the operation before returning to the Imperial Palace with his wife.
The Empress was diagnosed with stage one breast cancer after a lump was found in July during an ultrasound and the diagnosis was confirmed in August after a needle biopsy. It is not yet clear if Empress Michiko will need to undergo any further treatments and this decision will be made based on the result of the final pathological diagnosis of the removed tissue.
Empress Michiko also underwent cataract surgery on both eyes in June and was also diagnosed with heart valve abnormalities earlier this summer. Her husband abdicated in April of this year and was succeeded by their eldest son Naruhito on the Chrysanthemum throne.
