• Posted March 18, 2026

White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles Diagnosed With Early Breast Cancer

White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles says she will keep working as she undergoes treatment for early-stage breast cancer.

The diagnosis was shared publicly Monday, with President Donald Trump saying Wiles has an "excellent" prognosis and will remain "virtually full time at the White House."

Wiles said she feels encouraged about her care and recovery.

“I am grateful to have an outstanding team of doctors who detected the cancer early and are guiding my care, and I am encouraged by a strong prognosis,” she said in a statement.

Trump said Wiles chose to begin treatment right away.

She "decided to take on this challenge, IMMEDIATELY, as opposed to waiting," he wrote on Truth Social.

“Her Strength and her Commitment to continue doing the job she loves, and does so well, while undergoing treatment, tells you everything you need to know about her,” he added.

Wiles later appeared at a White House meeting with the Kennedy Center board, where Trump described her as "an amazing person, an amazing fighter" and called her diagnosis "a minor difficulty," CNN reported.

"She’s going to take care of it immediately," Trump said. He added that her prognosis was "excellent."

Wiles has played a major role in Trump’s political campaigns in recent years. She helped lead his 2024 campaign and then became chief of staff, the first woman to hold the role.

In the White House, she oversees day-to-day operations while helping manage the president’s schedule and priorities.

Trump has often praised her leadership, once calling her the “most powerful woman in the world.”

“She will soon be better than ever!” he wrote. “Melania and I are with her in every way.”

Other than skin cancers, breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in U.S. women, according to the American Cancer Society.

It is most often found in middle-aged and older women, with an median diagnosis age of about 62. (Median means half are diagnosed at a younger age, half later.)

Treatment depends on the type and stage of cancer and may include surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, hormone therapy or targeted drug therapy.

More information

The Mayo Clinic has more on breast cancer.

SOURCE: CNN, March 16, 2026