Nepal's Prime Minister Sushil Koirala's aide Dinesh Bhattarai said on Friday that the PM will soon undergo a course of radiotherapy in New York as he has been diagnosed with lung cancer.

Koirala, 75, is a heavy smoker and medical tests have been performed on him for the past two weeks at New York's Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre.

A course of radiotherapy has been recommended to Koirala. The Nepal's PM is also suffering from chronic bronchitis, said his personal physician Karbir Nath Yogi.

However, the good news is that Koirala's lung cancer is in initial stage. It has been more than seven years for Koirala to receive treatment for tongue cancer at the same hospital.

Information Minister Minendra Rijal confirmed the news that doctors at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York have said that the spots on Sushil Koiarla's lungs are at an initial stage and can be treated quickly.
The radiotherapy treatment will begin on Friday and it is expected to be completed within two weeks.

The news of his diagnosis for lung cancer has come at a time when the government is all set to approve the annual budget before the end of fiscal year on July 16.

"I am really sad to confirm the fact that cancer in Prime Minister's lungs has been confirmed by the reports of several investigations", ekantipur.com quoted Koirala's personal physician Dr. Kabirnath Yogi as saying.

After the abolition of Nepal's centuries-old monarchy in 2008, six governments have ruled the country. Koirala has been leading a center-left coalition since February and his centrist Nepali Congress party is becoming stronger every day.