Reagan Will Have Surgery Next Month : Reagan Scheduled to Have Prostate Surgery on Jan. 5

President Reagan will undergo surgery in January to relieve “mild, recurring discomfort” caused by an enlarged prostate, the White House announced today.

Presidential spokesman Larry Speakes said Reagan will have what is technically called a transurethral resection of the prostate performed by two civilian physicians at Bethesda Naval Hospital outside Washington on Jan. 5.

Reagan, 75, underwent a similar procedure 20 years ago and was told he probably would have to have it done again at some time, Speakes said.

The prostate is a sex gland surrounding the urethra at the base of the bladder. It often becomes enlarged in men as they grow older and can sometimes be cancerous.

No Sign of Cancer

Speakes said there is no evidence that Reagan has cancer of the prostate, although examination of tissue removed during the procedure is normal in such cases to determine whether any malignancy is present.

During the same visit to the hospital, the President also will undergo a colonoscopy examination to check for any recurrence of the colon cancer discovered and removed in July, 1985, Speakes said. He is expected to be hospitalized for three or four days.

Speakes said Reagan will enter the hospital Jan. 4, two days after his return from a New Year’s vacation in California, and will undergo a physical examination and the colonoscopy that day, a Sunday. The next day, Reagan will have the prostate surgery.

The prostate procedure, to be performed by two Minnesota physicians recommended by a friend and associate of Nancy Reagan’s late father, Dr. Loyal Davis, will be done under a spinal anesthetic, and Reagan is not expected to lose consciousness, Speakes said.

To Take 30 to 40 Minutes

He said the physicians, Dr. David Utz of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and Dr. J. R. Beahrs, who was trained at the Mayo Clinic and now practices in Minnesota, expect the procedure to take about 30 to 40 minutes.

Speakes said Dr. Oliver Beahrs of the Mayo Clinic, who was described as “an old friend and associate of Mrs. Reagan’s father,” will be present for the procedure. He is the father of Dr. J. R. Beahrs.

Asked why Reagan had chosen civilian physicians to perform the procedure rather than a team of military doctors such as the one that performed his cancer surgery last year, Speakes said it was simply “family preference.”

“These are friends,” the spokesman said.