White House hopeful Warren releases medical report showing 'excellent health'

By Amanda Becker

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Elizabeth Warren on Friday became the first 2020 Democratic White House contender to release the results of a recent medical exam, showing the U.S. senator from Massachusetts is in "excellent health," according to her longtime doctor.

"Senator Warren is in excellent health and has been throughout the 20 years I have served as her physician," Dr. Beverly Woo of Brigham and Women's Hospital wrote in a letter accompanying the release. Woo also teaches at Harvard Medical School.

Warren, 70, is one of 15 candidates vying for the Democratic Party's nomination to take on President Donald Trump in November 2020.

A comprehensive medical physical in January 2019 showed that Warren's blood pressure, heart rate, cholesterol, blood sugar and weight were within normal ranges. A mammogram performed at the same time showed no evidence of cancer. She takes daily medication for an underactive thyroid, the records show.

"She exercises regularly and follows a healthy diet despite her very busy schedule," Woo wrote.

"There are no medical conditions or health problems that would keep her from fulfilling the duties of the president of the United States," she concluded.

Modern U.S. presidential candidates typically release some form of their medical history but are not required to do so.

President Donald Trump, 73, was the oldest U.S. president elected to a first term. During his 2016 campaign he released a letter from his doctor stating that he was in "extraordinary" health but no test results or underlying records. Trump's physician, Dr. Harold Bornstein at Lenox Hospital in New York, told CNN in 2018 that Trump dictated the letter.

(Reporting By Amanda Becker in Washington. Editing by Gerry Doyle)