Oscar winning director Oliver Stone has disclosed that Russian President Vladimir Putin has battled cancer in the past. Stone was able to observe Putin in close proximity because he conducted a series of in-depth interviews with the Russian leader from 2015 to 2017.
In a podcast interview with Lex Fridman, Stone revealed that Putin had cancer and beat the disease. "Keep in mind, Mr. Putin had cancer, and I believe he beat it," he said, without elaborating on the type of cancer.
This revelation comes amid the current speculation surrounding Putin's health. There are rumors that he might be suffering from a medical condition, most probably cancer and the Parkinson's disease. His deep isolation coupled with the imposition of strict quarantine rules for visitors further contributed to this theory, as reported by The Sun.
Stone's comments on cancer, if true, give rise to possibilities of the disease returning because it has been three years since he last met Putin. Recently, former British intelligence official Christopher Steele claimed that Putin left meetings to receive medical treatment and is always surrounded by a team of doctors.
"Meetings of the Security Council thаt are shown to supposedly last an hour are аctuаlly broken up into several sections," said Steele, a Russian expert for MI6 intelligence for 22 years. "In between those sections, [Putin] goes out and gets some kind of medical treatment."
Steele further added with Putin's ailing health, Kremlin is becoming more and more chaotic. "It's unclear what this illness is—whether it's incurable, terminal, or something else entirely. But, certainly, I believe it is а factor," he said.
Steele is certain that the Russian leader's health issue is seriously impacting the country's governance, even after all this, there appears "little to no chance of Russia withdrawing from Ukraine," as per the Daily Mail.
An investigation by the Russian independent journalists also supports the same theory as it reveals that the large medical team accompanying Putin is led by a specialist thyroid cancer surgeon.
Other reports suggest it might be abdominal cancer. The rumors about Parkinson's disease came to light when videos of Putin trembling and tightly clutching а table during а meeting with Russiаn Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu made it to twitter.
As the world continues to speculate, Kremlin insists that their leader is in good health and Dmitry Peskov, Putin's press secretary, repeatedly denies any and every rumor surrounding the Russian President's health.
