GOP candidate for N.J. governor discloses cancer

Jack Ciattarelli, a New Jersey assemblyman and Republican candidate for governor, said Thursday that he had undergone surgery in November to remove cancer and lymph nodes from his neck and expects to complete radiation therapy by the end of the month.

Ciattarelli, 55, of Somerset County, said he would continue to seek the GOP nomination, though surrogates would campaign on his behalf for some events this month.

The primary is scheduled for June.

He said he has been receiving radiation treatments five days a week since mid-December.

After noticing a lump on his neck in October, Ciattarelli said, he was soon diagnosed with oropharyngeal cancer, which affects the tongue, throat, and tonsils.

"It was important to me that I be fully transparent with my health and shoot straight with both voters and the media about my condition," he said in a statement.

"One, because honesty matters when you aspire to being governor of New Jersey. And, two, because I am hopeful that my story encourages someone else to get any suspicious lumps or sudden and unusual snoring checked out immediately."

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