Dr. Zane Cohen gives an update on the medical condition of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford at Mount Sinai Hospital
Dr. Zane Cohen (C), colorectal surgeon and director of the Zane Cohen Centre for Digestive Diseases, gives an update on the medical condition of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto September 11, 2014. Speculation swept Canada's biggest city on Thursday after Rob Ford, who made global headlines last year for admitting he had smoked crack cocaine, was hospitalized with an abdominal tumor just six weeks before the mayoral election. REUTERS/Brett Gundlock

Canada politician Rob Ford, who had been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, asked Toronto residents to vote for his brother to elect him as the next mayor replacing Ford himself.

Ford released his first public statement after having been diagnosed with malignant liposarcoma. The Toronto mayor asked his residents to elect his brother Doug as his replacement in the October election. He said that he was encouraging his brother to "jump into" the mayoral race with all his heart. "Toronto needs Doug Ford as mayor," the controversial politician said in his 3-minute-long audio message.

Ford also said that he was soon to begin chemotherapy for the cancer that typically developed in fat cells in deep soft tissue, Reuters reported. "In a few hours I'll begin my chemotherapy, then I'll spend the next little while with my family focused on getting better," Ford said. Ford's doctor, Dr. Zane Cohen told reporters on Wednesday that the Toronto mayor was suffering from a rare kind of cancer called Liposarcoma. Cohen described the disease as "very rare" and "difficult." He also said that the large tumour in Ford's abdomen was "fairly aggressive."

Ford's brother Doug was his campaign manager. Ford withdrew his name for the mayoral election after he had been admitted to hospital last week for abdominal pain. Later, it was discovered that he had tumours in his abdomen and buttock. The tumour in the abdomen is pretty large. The biopsy results confirmed that Ford's tumours were malignant. His cancer is so rare that it makes up less than one per cent of diagnosed cancers among adults, Cohen said. Doug Ford earlier released a statement where he called his brother "an incredible person." "Rob will beat this," he said.

The mayoral election of the biggest city in Canada will take place on Oct 27. Doug is considered to be less controversial than his elder brother who is notorious for his volatile temper. Rob has seen tough days in the recent past while being bombarded with one controversy after another. The Toronto mayor has also been in rehab for a while. While he vowed to be a changed person, he was diagnosed with cancer.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@ibtimes.com.au

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