Chavez has less than two years to live: Former doctor

Washington, Oct 18 (ANI): Venezuela President Hugo Chavez, who is undergoing cancer treatment, has less than two years to live.

According to Chavez's former doctor, the health forecast for the firebrand leader was not too good.

Chavez will return to Cuba on Saturday to begin a new phase of cancer treatment that will include chemotherapy at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela.

He has been through four rounds of chemotherapy in Cuba since revealing he had a cancerous tumor removed in June, Fox News reports.

Salvador Navarrete, his former personal surgeon, told Mexican newspaper Milenio Semanal that the leader's condition likely was worse than publicly admitted.

The doctor described the prognosis as "not good," and added, "When I say this, I mean that he has no more than two years to live."

Navarrete said Chavez likely was suffering from either a tumor in his pelvis or a sarcoma, which would explain the intensive course of treatment.

Navarrete was the personal surgeon for Chavez from 2002 until earlier this year, when Chavez changed his medical staff to exclusively Cuban doctors.

Before departing for Havana, Chavez told Venezuelan TV that the visit was routine, but he did not disclose any details of his condition. (ANI)