Kuomintang (KMT) presidential hopeful Hung Hsiu-chu held a press conference on Wednesday responding to rumors that she had previously battled breast cancer.
Hung said that she was diagnosed with breast cancer back in March of 2011, and had surgery in April of that year, followed by treatment.
Hung said that during that time, she never once missed an important meeting or event, even though she was battling cancer. Hung would go on to become vice president of the legislature in February of the following year. She said she had no plans to drop out of the race.
Hung also brought with her a clean bill of health, saying that she was already prepared for questions about her health.
“As I stand before you today, I ask you to rest assured that I have a healthy future ahead of me," said Hung.
"At the same time I have to say that it’s a sad state of affairs that elections in Taiwan can be so unscrupulous," she said. "But seeing as I’ve decided to join the race, then as they say, ‘if you can’t take the heat, stay out of the kitchen.’ I’ll meet any challenge that comes my way. But I just wish that the election culture was not the way it is."
Hung also took the opportunity to remind women over 40 to get regular checkups, which can help with early detection.