Syria's President Bashar al-Assad stands next to his wife Asma, as he addresses injured soldiers and their mothers during a celebration marking Syrian Mother's Day in Damascus. (REUTERS File Photo)
BEIRUT, August 8 (Reuters): Syrian first lady Asma al-Assad has started treatment for early stage breast cancer, Syrian state media reported on Wednesday.
A photo published by the state news agency SANA and the Syrian presidency showed Asma al-Assad, 42, hooked up to a drip smiling and sitting next to her husband President Bashar al-Assad in what appeared to be a hospital room.
"Asma al-Assad begins the first stage of treatment for a malignant tumour of the breast which was discovered early," said a statement issued on the presidency's Telegram feed.
A former investment banker, Asma al-Assad was born and raised in London to Syrian parents. She married Assad in 2000.
