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Associated Press - November 9, 2009 1:44 PM ET
PHOENIX (AP) - A freshman legislator from southern Arizona is receiving treatment for a form of cancer.
Sen. Al Melvin, a Republican representing parts of the Tucson area and southern Pinal County, announced Monday that he has non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
The 65-year-old Melvin said he's making the disclosure because he wants people to know the reason for what he expects will be "considerable hair loss" due to the treatment.
Melvin said he's lucky that the disease was detected early and is a form that's highly treatable. He said it has not interfered with his work.
Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is an immune-system cancer. The American Cancer Society estimates that it will strike nearly 66,000 people in the United States in 2009 while causing 19,500 deaths.
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