Kennedy returns home after brain surgery

HYANNISPORT, Mass., June 9 (UPI) -- Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., returned to his Massachusetts home Monday after undergoing surgery for a malignant brain tumor last week.

In a statement released by Kennedy's staff, doctors reportedly "are pleased" with the senator's progress since the surgery and that he will recuperate at the Kennedy family compound in Hyannisport, Mass., in preparation for "the next phase" of his treatment.

The Boston Globe reported the three-hour operation was performed by Dr. Allan Friedman, chief of neurosurgery at the Duke University Medical Center, a surgeon reportedly known for taking on procedures deemed risky because of a tumor's critical location.

In a statement released last week, Friedman said Kennedy, 76, was awake during the operation and "should therefore experience no permanent neurological effects from the surgery."