Doctors: Former President Jimmy Carter can stop cancer treatments

ATLANTA, March 6 (UPI) -- Former President Jimmy Carter announced his doctors told him he no longer needs to have cancer treatment for malignant melanoma after a recent MRI confirmed he is cancer free.

Carter, 91, made the announcement Sunday at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, Ga. People at the church said Emory Winship Cancer Institute doctors gave him the news after an MRI last week. Carter's niece and a representative of the Carter Center confirmed the news.

"He said the doctors determined that he would not need any more treatment now," said Mandy Flynn, one of Carter's nieces, who was in the class. "He said he will continue to get scans and MRIs and if the time comes that they need to start (treatment) back up, they will."

Carter Center director of communications Deanna Congileo said Carter will no longer need regular treatments of an immunotherapy drug, which he had from August through February.

The former president announced in August he was diagnosed with skin cancer that had spread to his liver and brain. He was initially told he had weeks to live. After surgery, radiation and immunotherapy, Carter was declared cancer-free in December.

Carter was the 39th president for one term between 1997 and 1981. He has since focused his efforts on protecting human rights. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.