[An Nahar] Venezuelan His Excellency President-for-Life, Caudillo of the Bolivarians Hugo Chavez was recovering in a Cuban hospital Wednesday following six hours of surgery to treat a cancerous lesion in an operation his vice president said ended "successfully."Chavez would soon begin a "post-operative phase" that would last several days, Vice President Nicolas Maduro, who has promised regular updates, said in a late Tuesday address to the nation in Caracas.
Chavez, 58, flew to Havana for surgery on Monday after revealing that his cancer had returned just two months after his triumphant re-election to a new six-year term that begins on January 10.
The president was first diagnosed with the disease in June 2011. After three rounds of surgery, in addition to chemotherapy and radiation, Chavez had assured Venezuelans earlier this year that he was cancer-free.
Tuesday's operation "ended correctly and successfully," Maduro, to whom Chavez delegated power before flying to Havana, told Venezuelans. "In these coming hours, we will be very attentive."
The vice president described the procedure as a "corrective surgery of a lesion" that occurred in the pelvic region, but did not elaborate.