His Excellency President-for-Life, Caudillo of the Bolivarians Hugo Chavez has admitted to having had a cancerous tumor removed, following weeks of speculation over the leftist firebrand's condition and unprecedented absence from public life."Studies confirmed the existence of a tumor with cancerous cells," the 56-year-old leader said Thursday in his first televised address since being rushed to hospital in Cuba on June 10 during a state visit.
Venezuelan officials had said he was being treated for a painful pelvic abscess, but Chavez announced that the operation had uncovered the tumor and a second operation had been deemed necessary to remove it.
Chavez did not say where the tumor was found or what type of cancer was detected.
In the emotional late night address, broadcast live in Venezuela, Chavez expressed hope for a full recovery and acknowledged a "fundamental error" in neglecting his health for years.
In contrast to his famously long, improvised speeches that often run hours on end and frequently feature diatribes against U.S. "imperialism," Chavez's pre-recorded address was read from a script in a tight 15-minute video.
Flanked by an image of Venezuelan independence hero Simon Bolivar on one side and the national flag on the other, Chavez was visibly thinner but remained animated during parts of his address.
Dozens of government supporters erupted into the streets of Caracas to show their solidarity with the ailing president, who insisted he was still in control.
"I have kept informed and am in control of the Venezuelan government," he said, adding that he has been in "constant communication" with Vice President Elias Jaua and members of his administration.
The president of South America's biggest oil producer and champion of the Latin American left did not, however, indicate when he would return to Venezuela, where he has been elected president three times since 1998.
Immediately after the broadcast, Jaua made his own somber address to the nation in which he insisted the government was still functioning and called for the "unity of all revolutionary forces in the country."
"This is not time for sadness but time for reflection, courage and to work calmly as the commander recovers," Jaua said.
The ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) said it would keep working to achieve Chavez's ideals.
His medical condition had been shrouded in mystery, which deepened Wednesday with the delay of a major upcoming regional summit he was due to host.
The president "is in the midst of a strict process of recovery and medical treatment," the foreign ministry said at the time, without elaborating.
Chavez's unusual withdrawal from public life left many Venezuelans speculating that he might have had plastic surgery, could be hiding a more serious ailment or was drumming up sympathy ahead of a 2012 re-election bid.
Venezuelans were especially shocked by his silence on two major issues in the past month -- the government's decision to limit electricity use to combat shortages and a days-long prison riot that left 29 people dead.
In his address, the president justified the silence on his health by saying he only wanted to speak once he was assured he would recover.
The government's refusal to provide any specifics on his condition for 20 days emboldened opposition politicians, who alleged it was unconstitutional for the president to be governing from abroad.
Chavez last spoke publicly on June 12, when he told Caracas-based pan-Latin American television network Telesur by phone that he was receiving treatment in Cuba.
Since then, he has sent several Twitter messages and earlier this week appeared on Cuban and Venezuelan television alongside revolutionary icon Fidel Castro, in an apparent bid to plug rumors about his condition.
But the decision to postpone the inaugural summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) on July 5-6 added to rising concern over his lengthy stay in Havana.
That announcement also appeared to cast doubt on the normally omnipresent leftist leader making it back to Caracas in time for celebrations marking the bicentennial of Venezuela's independence from Spain, on July 5.
Venezuelan officials had rejected earlier reports in the U.S. press that Chavez was at death's door following his hospitalization.
"A picture says more than 1,000 words," Venezuelan Information Minister Andres Izarra said after seeing the video of Chavez with Castro. "We can see him there, very dynamic. We can see that he is recovering."