A Timeline Of Beau Biden's Brain Cancer Before His Death
Joe Biden has dealt with immense tragedy in his life, and he unfortunately lost his son, Beau Biden, to brain cancer. The president and his late first wife, Neilia, welcomed Beau into the family in 1969. The couple had three children, including Beau, but unfortunately, tragedy struck the Biden family after his wife and kids were involved in a devastating car crash that killed Neilia, as well as Beau's younger sister, Naomi. While this most definitely affected Beau, he didn't let it interfere with future ventures.
After graduating high school, Beau attended the University of Pennsylvania before graduating and moving on to Syracuse University's law school. He had an impressive career as a lawyer until 2003 when he joined the Delaware National Guard. He served his country as his father became the vice president of the United States, but not before making a sweet speech for his father at the Democratic National Convention. Beau said, "I know my father will be a great vice president. As I mentioned, my dad has always been there for me, my brother, and my sister, every day."
Beau witnessed his father become the vice president of the United States after he and Barack Obama were elected into office. However, shortly after, he began experiencing health issues that ultimately led to his untimely death.
Beau's health troubles started with a stroke
Beau Biden began to deal with health issues in 2010, two years after his dad, Joe Biden, became vice president. In May, he was admitted to the hospital after suffering a mild stroke. Despite the scary incident, Timothy Gardner, a medical director at the hospital, revealed that he was doing quite well. Gardner told CNN, "He is in good spirits and talking with his family at the hospital. He is fully alert, in stable condition and has full motor and speech skills. We expect him to make a complete recovery." Beau wasn't alone, as his father and his wife were said to be at the hospital with him. A statement revealed that Beau was set to be transferred to another location so he could undergo further observation.
Although it was a bit concerning Beau had suffered such a serious health issue at such a young age, being 41 at the time, he was one of the many who made a comeback after suffering a stroke. Days after the medical event, he was released from the hospital. As he left the hospital, he quickly remarked about his recovery to reporters, sharing, "Good to be headed home." Beau may have had a speedy recovery from his stroke, but this was just the start of the many health issues he would face in the coming years.
Beau went to the hospital to undergo tests
Three years after his stroke, Beau Biden was dealt another unfair hand in life. In 2013, the Biden family took a vacation to Indiana, but Beau fell ill during the trip. He began experiencing troubling symptoms such as weakness and disorientation, so he went to Northwestern University Hospital to get medical treatment and testing done. The following day, Beau was said to be in better shape but spoke to a doctor at Jefferson University Hospital, where he was later discharged. Despite being released from the hospital, Beau returned days later.
In August 2013, Beau had a biopsy for a brain mass. Jill and Joe Biden released a statement to NBC News, which read, "Yesterday our son Beau underwent a successful procedure. He is in great shape and is going to be discharged tomorrow and heading home to Delaware. He will follow up with his local physicians in the coming weeks." Many were expecting Beau to reveal the biopsy results, but he kept things under wraps. The only thing his medical team revealed was that he had surgery for a small lesion and was healthy again.
Despite what Beau's team said, many still had concerns over the politician's health. As Beau made public appearances, people noted that he looked much thinner and frail. His medical situation continued to remain under wraps until 2015 when things started to go south.
Mystery surrounded Beau's admittance to hospital
People knew something was happening behind the scenes in Beau Biden's life, but things remained hush-hush. After having a biopsy on a brain mass, Beau went back to work. In 2014, he even revealed he was stepping aside as Delaware's attorney general, as many speculated that he was gearing up to run for governor in 2016. Even his brother, Hunter Biden, appeared on "Andrea Mitchell Reports" and hinted at the possibility of his brother becoming governor, as quoted by Politico. "He decided that he didn't think it was fair to the state of Delaware to run for attorney general simply for the platform to run for governor," he explained.
It seemed like everything was back to normal; Hunter even shared how Beau was following his series of health issues. He said, "[Beau's] doing great, he's doing absolutely great. It was very scary, but he's back to work and he's been back to work and he's doing great." It seemed like whatever Beau had dealt with medically was in the past, but unfortunately, that wasn't true.
In May 2015, Beau was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, but the reason was kept a secret. Even the White House didn't provide further comment on the matter. Everything was a mystery, but in days, the world would know what was truly going on with Beau.
Beau Biden dies of brain cancer
About a week and a half after Beau Biden's admittance to the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, the politician tragically died on May 30, 2015, due to brain cancer. Initially, when Beau was admitted, it was said that he was suffering from an undisclosed illness. However, Joe Biden's office revealed that in the days that followed, Beau's cancer, which was originally diagnosed in 2013, had returned.
Following his death, his father released a statement honoring his oldest son's life. He said, "It is with broken hearts that Hallie, Hunter, Ashley, Jill and I announce the passing of our husband, brother and son, Beau, after he battled brain cancer with the same integrity, courage and strength he demonstrated every day of his life." Joe Biden detailed Beau's professional accomplishments but revealed that being a family man truly made him the person he was. The then-vice president ended the heartfelt statement, saying, "In the words of the Biden family: Beau Biden was, quite simply, the finest man any of us have ever known."
On June 6, 2015, Beau was laid to rest in his home state of Delaware. The entire Biden family attended, as did several famous political figures, including Barack and Michelle Obama and Bill and Hillary Clinton. Beau's death was a tragedy for his family, friends, and contemporaries, who mourned his loss and looked back on how he impacted their lives.
Beau's death continues to be brought into headlines
Beau Biden may have passed away years ago, but his death continues to be brought into the limelight, and this has been a sore subject for Joe Biden. In 2024, an investigation was put to rest after special counsel Robert Hur decided not to prosecute the president for how he handled classified documents. Despite not prosecuting, Hur's report took aim at the elder Biden's memory and even claimed that Joe forgot the date of Beau's death during the investigation. The report read, "He did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died." These comments about his son's death did not sit well with the president as he addressed the report in a press conference.
Joe Biden was not happy about Hur's suggestion that he forgot the date of Beau's death, telling reporters, "I don't need anyone, anyone, to remind me when he passed away. How the hell dare he raise that." He felt that they were crossing the line when they asked him about the date of Beau's death as he thought, "Frankly, when I was asked the question, I thought to myself, was it any of their damn business?" Joe continued to reiterate that his mental health was fine, despite concerns about his age, and he made it clear that his son, Beau, was off limits.