Takai resting after cancer surgery

U.S. Rep. Mark Takai had surgery to remove a small, cancerous tumor in his pancreas Tuesday and was resting after the operation at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., according to a spokesman.

No other details were available.

Takai has said the tumor is small and isolated and that his prognosis is good because the cancer was discovered early. Takai announced Oct. 26 that he had been diagnosed with a small tumor on his pancreas after having tests to determine why he had been experiencing stomach pain.

Takai, 48, was elected to his first term in Congress last year. He represents urban Oahu.

He served in the state Legislature for 20 years before winning election last year to the U.S. House seat that was vacated by former Rep. Colleen Hanabusa. Takai, a Democrat, is an Iraq War veteran who deployed to the Middle East in 2009.

He is a lieutenant colonel in the Hawaii Army National Guard, and works for the Guard as a preventive medical officer.

Takai is married to Sami Takai. They have a son, Matthew, and a daughter, Kaila.