Staff and wire reports

WASHINGTON — Bob Dole, the longtime senator from Kansas who is married to Salisbury’s Elizabeth Dole, said he has an advanced form of lung cancer and will undergo treatment.

“Recently, I was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. My first treatment will begin Monday,” Dole, 97, wrote on Twitter. “While I certainly have some hurdles ahead, I also know that I join millions of Americans who face significant health challenges of their own.”

The 1996 Republican presidential nominee has suffered a series of ailments in previous years. He was seriously wounded during World War II. In 1991, he received surgery for prostate cancer, received abdominal aortic aneurysm surgery in 2001 and was hospitalized in 2005 after a fall in his home.

In addition to his unsuccessful bid for the White House in 1996, Dole also ran for president in 1980 and 1988 but was not nominated.

He was President Gerald Ford’s running mate in 1976 after Nelson Rockefeller declined to stay on as vice president.

He served for 27 years as senator, including two stints as the Senate majority leader. He was also a congressman from 1961 to 1969.

In January 2018, Dole was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honor bestowed by Congress.