Former President Jimmy Carter will spend his “remaining time” at home receiving hospice care instead of receiving additional “medical intervention,” The Carter Center announced Saturday.
“After a series of short hospital stays, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter today decided to spend his remaining time at home with his family and receive hospice care instead of additional medical intervention,” a statement from the organization reads. “He has the full support of his family and his medical team. The Carter family asks for privacy during this time and is grateful for the concern shown by his many admirers.”
Carter turned 98 in October. He was the 39th president of the United States.
The former commander in chief was diagnosed with cancer in early 2015 after doctors performed liver surgery, according to a statement from the Carter Center, which made it clear that his cancer spread to other parts of his body.
In December 2015, Carter told his Sunday School class that he no longer has cancer.
“Went for an MRI this past week and they (doctors) didn’t find any cancer at all in the brain,” Carter said at the time.
Jill Stuckey, a member at Georgia’s Maranatha Baptist Church, said that the church erupted in applause when he made the announcement.
“He said he got a scan this week and the cancer was gone,” Stuckey said. “The church, everybody here, just erupted in applause.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.