TEHRAN – The director of the medical team for Abbas Kiarostami, Reza Paydar, said on Sunday that a report that claimed the filmmaker is suffering from cancer is not true.

“The latest pathology results reveal no sign of cancer and fortunately Kiarostami is in better condition,” Paydar told the Persian service of ISNA on Sunday.

“He had been suffering from a colon polyp, which was removed by an operation,” he said.

A team of high-ranking, professional physicians and surgeons are carefully observing the process of his treatment.

On Saturday, the Health Ministry spokesman Abbas Zarenejad had announced that Kiarostami is suffering from gastrointestinal cancer.

Kiarostami was hospitalized before Noruz in Tehran’s Jam Hospital and had an operation. However, he under went a second operation on Friday.

Paydar said that Kiarostami is now in stable condition.

Photo: Director Abbas Kiarostami in an undated photo (Mehr/Hossein Esmaeili)

RM/YAW

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