"If I find out that I would no longer be able to serve the Filipino people efficiently, I would tell them not to vote for me. But so far, what the doctors are telling me is that I can still engage anyone in a debate the moment I return, even without sleep," Roco said from Houston, Texas where he is seeking medical treatment.
Despite questions about his health, Roco maintained that he is not about to give up. He compared himself to two late American
presidents who continued to campaign despite having health problems — John F. Kennedy had back pain and Franklin D. Roosevelt was hampered by a deformed leg.
Roco dismissed rumors that his health has forced him to withdraw from the presidential race.
"Tuloy na tuloy ang laban at pagsisikapan kong nandiyan ako bago magkatapusan ng buwan (The fight is still on and I will try to be there before the end of the month)," he said.
Roco added that while doctors at a hospital in Houston have no diagnosis yet, "the prognosis is good." He is currently undergoing tests as an outpatient, with Texas doctors repeating the x-ray and laboratory exams performed on him in the Philippines.
"My illness is somewhere near my bottom. They are checking if there is anything wrong in my blood, in my bone and in my muscles. I don’t want to give details because I might say something wrong. But I’m a frank person and when the diagnosis comes out, I won’t hide it from the Filipino people," he said in a radio interview.
He expects to be back in the country by the end of the month.
Roco’s campaign manager and health adviser, Dr. Jaime Galvez-Tan, said doctors in Houston have yet to confirm local physicians’ findings that he has prostate cancer. He already underwent prostate surgery in 1996.
Roco started feeling "chronic pain in the lower back" last March 25 in the middle of a six-day campaign sortie in Mindanao and the Visayas.
Last Tuesday, he shocked the nation when he announced that he was leaving for the United States to seek treatment for chronic lower back pain, which some quarters said effectively put him out of the race.
His illness is expected to jeopardize his presidential bid, especially as he has been running third in major election surveys and had to go on medical leave to the US in the middle of the campaign.
In an apparent dig at his rivals for the Presidency, he said Filipinos should fight for their right to choose their leader.
"Hindi pwede iyong nagnanakaw. Hindi pwede naman iyong hindi makapagbigay ng paglilingkod. Hindi pwede naman iyong may dugo sa kamay. So kayo na ang pumili (It can’t be someone who steals. It can’t be someone who cannot serve. It can’t be someone who has blood on his hands. It is up to you to choose)," Roco said.
He also shrugged off the claim made by former Cebu governor Lito Osmeña, who was earlier quoted as saying that he is not likely to win the presidential election.
"Iba naman ang pagkaalam ko pero nasa kanya iyan. Wala tayong magagawa diyan (I know differently but it’s up to him. We can’t do anything about that)," Roco said.
Osmeña, whose Probinsya Muna Development Initiative (Promdi) forms part of the Alyansa, earlier said that he would not abandon Roco in sickness or in health.
Roco’s younger brother, Facundo, confirmed that the ailing candidate underwent necessary treatments for prostate cancer in 1996.
"He went through surgery, the cancer cells have been successfully removed. He has been healthy since then as proven by his outstanding performance as a public servant," Facundo told The STAR.
But Roco himself has not made publicly admitted that he suffered from prostate cancer. Whenever he is asked about the illness, he would just say that he went through prostate operation without specifically admitting that he had cancer.
Facundo noted that after the 1996 surgery, his brother has been examined for signs of prostate cancer every year.
"It’s actually a must for all males above 50 years old because when you get older, your risk of developing prostate cancer also increases. I think the last time he was checked was in July 2003 and nothing was found," he said.
Facundo denied Tan’s statement saying that local doctors have diagnosed Roco with prostate cancer and that he flew to Houston to have the initial findings validated there.
"I think he was merely speculating. Maybe, he based his statement on (Roco’s health condition in) 1996," he said.
Facundo refused to reveal the latest findings on his brother but assured that "it is not life-threatening if attended right away."
"I’m not at liberty (to divulge anything). (Roco) wants to be the one to announce it," Facundo said as he described his brother as one who will "continue to fight as long as there is life in him."