Treasury Secretary Lew to have outpatient prostate-related surgery

WASHINGTON -- Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew will undergo outpatient surgery to treat a benign enlarged prostate and will be sidelined for about a week, a department spokeswoman said Sunday.

Lew, 58, will have the procedure Tuesday in New York and expects to remain at his home there the rest of the week, said Treasury spokeswoman Natalie Wyeth Earnest.

“His physician expects that he will be able to return to his full schedule next week,” Earnest said.

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Lew has been Treasury secretary since February 2013, moving to the job after serving as White House chief of staff.

He is one of President Obama’s top Cabinet officials and has been involved in recent weeks in helping craft sanctions against Russia for its annexation of Crimea.

The prostate problem was an issue for Lew on an official trip to Mexico City last week. Lew received outpatient treatment at a hospital there Tuesday for what a Treasury spokesman described at the time as “a minor medical issue.”

Lew was able to resume his schedule in Mexico City, the second leg of a trip that also took him to Brazil.