Biden Says Health to Limit Book Promotion as Cancer 'Slows Me Down'

Former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. said his aggressive prostate cancer meant he "won't be able to do as many conversations" to promote his forthcoming memoir as he had hoped.

Former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. said Sunday that his health would prevent him from making as many public appearances to promote his forthcoming memoir as he had hoped.

The former president, 83, whose health has faced scrutiny since his time in the White House, was diagnosed last year with an aggressive form of prostate cancer that spread to his bones. Mr. Biden underwent radiation therapy and surgery to remove skin cancer lesions, and his son Hunter Biden said in an interview over the summer that his condition was worsening and causing him pain.

Mr. Biden said he had started writing the memoir, "Promise Me, America," which covers his years as president, when he received the diagnosis. He indicated afterward that he felt intense pressure to finish quickly as he battled the disease, saying he was "working like hell" with his publisher.

Now, he says his cancer will also affect his ability to promote the book.

"Some days are better than others. It hasn't stopped me. But sometimes it slows me down," Mr. Biden wrote Sunday in a post on X. "What that means is, unfortunately, I won't be able to do as many conversations about my book as I'd hoped."

He added, "My doctors continue to be encouraged by how I've responded to treatment."

Mr. Biden's age and health set off an intense debate during his final year in office. Mr. Biden ended his re-election bid after a disastrous June 2024 debate performance against President Donald Trump, during which Mr. Biden repeatedly lost his train of thought.

Hunter Biden said on a podcast in July that he believed his father was unknowingly suffering from cancer during that debate. (Medical experts who were not involved in Mr. Biden's care said it was unlikely that his debate performance was affected by the cancer diagnosed months later.)

The former president sold the rights to his memoir for $10 million last year and announced in July 2026 that it would be released just after the midterm elections, on Nov. 17. The book will cover Mr. Biden's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, wars in Afghanistan and Ukraine, and the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, among other things.

"It's about who we are as a nation. What we stand for. And America's role in the world," Mr. Biden wrote in the X post. "More than anything, it's about my faith in the American people and the great American experiment in self-governance and democracy."