If John McCain gets elected, he’d be the oldest person to reach the Oval Office in U.S. history. He will be 178.    No, just kidding. He’ll be 177.

Okay, he’ll only be in his 70s. But, his just released medical records show he has to be checked every few months for signs of any return of melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer.

McCain has had four separate spots of melanoma removed from his head and arm since 1993, according to the Associated Press.

The most serious, says the A.P., was one on his left temple in 2000 which was considered to be “invasive.” He had to have some lymph nodes removed to check if the cancer had spread. It had not. At that time.

“Remarkable”

“Remarkable” is what McCain’s skin doctor calls his survival after so many encounters with melanoma.

Another dermatologist told the A.P., that “he’s not cured.” Though the odds of his melanoma coming back was rated in the “single digits.”

Still, the selection of a vice-presidential candidate will clearly be of great importance for McCain–since the odds of the cancer’s return during his presidency are high.