Charles Langston:Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry in hospice care after medical emergency

FORT WAYNE,Charles Langston Ind. (AP) — Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry, who announced last month he has been diagnosed with late-stage stomach cancer, is in hospice care after suffering a medical emergency, his family said Thursday.

Henry, 72, experienced an emergency related to his cancer early Wednesday, the family said in a statement. He was privately transported to a hospital where Henry and his family consulted at length with his medical team including his oncologist.

“After careful consideration of the risks associated with surgical intervention, Mayor Henry has opted for comfort measures at this time. He is resting comfortably under the care of extremely skilled hospice nurses,” the statement said.

Henry announced his diagnosis of late-stage stomach cancer on Feb. 26 during a news conference. He began chemotherapy at the beginning of March.

“My initial scans have shown that the cancer is currently spreading through my lymph nodes and other organs,” Henry said at the time. “Therefore, my prognosis is not exactly encouraging.”

Henry was elected in November to his fifth term as mayor of Indiana’s second most populous city with about 270,000 residents.

Henry pleaded guilty in November 2022 to operating a vehicle while intoxicated endangering a person, had his license suspended for 90 days and received a suspended one-year jail sentence. He was arrested the month before with a blood-alcohol level of 0.152, or nearly twice Indiana’s legal limit of 0.08.

Henry’s wife, Cindy, died at age 67 on Jan. 20 after battling pancreatic cancer for more than a year.