WASHINGTON — President Trump is undergoing what he has described as a “semiannual physical” at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Friday.
The visit, which the White House announced earlier this week, comes as Trump is preparing to travel to the Middle East on the heels of a ceasefire deal in the Israel-Hamas war. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt described it as a “routine yearly checkup,” although Trump had his annual physical in April.
The White House declined to explain why Trump was getting a yearly checkup six months after his annual exam. But in an exchange with reporters Thursday, he said it was a “semiannual physical.”
“I’m meeting with the troops, and I’m also going to do a, sort of, semiannual physical, which I do,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “I think I’m in great shape, but I’ll let you know.”
The president is scheduled to return to the White House after his visit to Walter Reed, which is located in Bethesda, Maryland.
Trump’s April physical found that he was “fully fit” to serve as commander in chief. The three-page summary of the exam done by his doctor, Navy Capt. Sean Barbabella, said he had lost 20 pounds (9 kilograms) since a medical exam in June 2020 and said he has an “active lifestyle” that “continues to contribute significantly” to the well-being of the president, who’s 79.
In July, the White House announced that Trump recently had had a medical checkup after noticing “mild swelling” in his lower legs and was found to have a condition common in older adults that causes blood to pool in his veins. Tests by the White House medical unit showed that Trump has chronic venous insufficiency, which occurs when little valves inside the veins that normally help move blood against gravity gradually lose the ability to work properly.
At the April physical, Trump also passed a short screening test to assess different brain functions.
Imogen Farmer was taken shopping in London as a reward for her A-level grades last year
Hundreds of thousands of GCSE students are nervously waiting for their results this week – and for some, a shiny, often expensive reward might be at stake.
Ahead of results day on Thursday, BBC News has spoken to students and parents about whether the promise of jewellery, gifts or cash for grades can actually motivate teens to do better in their exams.
Imogen Farmer, from Essex, was taken with her twin sister to London by their parents after they got their A-level results last year and given some money to spend as a reward.
“I bought Vivienne Westwood jewellery and then they took us to quite a fancy restaurant that we’d always wanted to go to,” Imogen says.
“But I think I knew in the back of my head if I did well or even if I didn’t do well, I’m sure our parents would have taken us out anyway for working hard.”
Imogen doesn’t think the reward would have made a difference to the amount she studied as she was always “quite ambitious” – and her parents didn’t mention it until after her exams were over.
Jess Cooper, from Birmingham, jokes that her reward was “not getting kicked out of the house”.
“Good grades were a reflection of how hard you tried at school,” she says.
“My parents are very proud of me and tell me all the time. I’m very working class, we have the grit and we try our hardest.”
Both Imogen and Jess both say some students in their classes were offered money for each top grade they achieved – while others were even promised “first cars” if they got the results they needed.
Jess Cooper
Student Jess Cooper believes for those that don’t like school, rewards could make them more motivated
Some parents believe the offer of a reward or financial incentive can help with motivation.
Leon Smith, from Surrey, has given his children a £50 reward for passing their exams, saying it helps them get into the right mindset beforehand.
“It means that, when they revise, they have the motivation and they will spend an extra hour looking at their books rather than playing video games”, the father-of-six explains.
He says his son Isiah, who has just finished Year 6 and took his Sats earlier this year, was particularly motivated to do well after watching his older sister Reah receive the £50 prize the year before.
“It gives them some form of incentive and the ability to work towards something,” Leon says.
He now plans to offer rewards for his children at GCSE and A-levels too.
Leon Smith
Leon Smith plans to offer a financial reward to his children at GCSE and A-levels to help their motivation
Mum-of-two Elaine Dean, from Manchester, says the promise she made of cash-for-grades ended up costing her “more than anticipated”.
The former primary school teacher decided to give her son Zach between £5 and £15 based on each grade for his GCSE exams two years ago, but she says she was really rewarding his effort.
“You don’t want to build up too much pressure on them, praise and parental involvement throughout their school years is far more important,” she says.
Zach received his A-level exam results on Thursday.
“I think his reward is going to be a city break with his brother but he hasn’t decided yet.”
Do rewards for good grades work?
Experts say the effectiveness of rewards very much depends on the student and their relationship with learning.
Rewarding effort rather than grades can be a far more long-term and sustainable strategy for parents, according to psychologist Natasha Tiwari.
“Cash or big-ticket treats can work in the short term,” she says, but they also risk making students think of achievements as “transactional”.
She believes a special day out, or being allowed to redecorate their bedroom or host some family or friends can be a far more powerful reward than “cash in an envelope”.
Different rewards – or none at all – can create tension within friendship groups too, she says.
“There is a distinction to be made between a reward for good grades and a treat to acknowledge their effort,” says Manny Botwe, president of the Association of School and College Leaders.
Secondary school head Manny says he is sceptical of the long-term benefits of trying to reward performance.
“I worry about the youngsters who don’t get good results, it’s ‘deal or no deal’,” he says.
“My advice for parents would be not to make their children feel their value is directly related to the grades they get. From very early on, I like to emphasis the intrinsic value of education.
During a routine medical exam, a small nodule was found in former President Joe Biden’s prostate. Its cause is unknown, and additional medical tests will be performed, officials say. File Photo by Leigh Vogel/UPI | License Photo
May 13 (UPI) — A routine medical physical revealed a small nodule in former President Joe Biden‘s prostate, but its cause is unknown.
“In a routine physical exam, a small nodule was found in the prostate, which necessitated further evaluation,” a Biden spokesperson told ABC News on Tuesday.
The nodule might be benign and could have many potential causes, but additional testing is underway to determine if it is harmless or cancerous.
Doctors removed a cancerous skin lesion from his chest while he was president in February 2023, Fox News reported.
The lesion was discovered during a routine physical examination, and a biopsy showed was cancerous after Biden’s doctor removed it.
The doctor had treated the biopsy site with electrodessication and curettage in case analysis later determined it was cancer. No further treatments were needed.
Such medical issues and suspected cognitive decline prompted some Democratic governors to call on Biden not to seek a second term in office.
Others pledged their support for Biden, who eventually withdrew his candidacy following a poor debate performance against President Donald Trump that raised questions about his cognitive abilities.
WASHINGTON — A small nodule was found in the prostate of former President Biden during a routine physical exam, a spokesperson said Tuesday.
A short statement said the finding “necessitated further evaluation,” but it was not clear whether that had already taken place or the outcome of the examination.
The detection of nodules in the prostate generally requires a further exam by a urologist to rule out prostate cancer. These kinds of abnormal growths can be caused by cancer or by less serious conditions, including inflammation or an enlarged prostate.
Biden is 82. His age and concerns about his health were cited by Democratic leaders who pressed him to abandon his reelection bid in 2024 following a disastrous debate performance last June.
But as recently as last week, Biden rejected concerns about his age, saying the broader party didn’t buy into that, and instead blaming the Democratic leadership and “significant contributors.”
President Trump repeatedly raised questions about Biden’s physical and mental capacity during the campaign.
In February 2023, Biden had a skin lesion removed from his chest that was a basal cell carcinoma, a common form of skin cancer. And in November 2021, he had a polyp removed from his colon that was a benign, but potentially pre-cancerous lesion.
