Chávez starts more cancer treatment in Cuba

SANTIAGO, Chile -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez has begun more medical treatment in Cuba after struggling with complications following cancer surgery more than six weeks ago, a government spokesman said Saturday.

Venezuelan Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said that it remains unclear how soon Chávez could return home. He did not specify the kind of treatment Chávez is receiving.

"Vice President [Nicolas] Maduro estimates that the time it could take President Chávez to return is within weeks. But we haven't wanted to fix an exact time frame for the president's recuperation," Villegas told reporters on the sidelines of summit meeting in Chile.

He read a statement with more information about Chávez's Dec. 11 surgery, but didn't describe the newest treatment. Authorities in the past have reported on specific treatments, including radiation and chemotherapy.

Chávez underwent "a complex surgical intervention for the removal of a malignant lesion in the pelvis," Villegas said. A "serious respiratory infection has been overcome, although a certain degree of respiratory deficiency persists," he said.

Chávez, 58, hasn't appeared or spoken publicly since before the operation. -- AP