• In the early days of 2005, Snow was diagnosed with colon cancer, the same disease that killed his mother.

• Snow opted for an operation that would remove his colon and refashion his small intestine to function in its place.

• He underwent six months of chemotherapy after being diagnosed with colon cancer. He also underwent regular tests, including a PET imaging scan, magnetic resonance imaging tests, and CAT scans.

• Tony Snow underwent surgery to remove a small growth in his lower abdomen in 2007.

• Colon cancer kept Snow off the air for eight weeks in 2005.

• Snow took the job as White House press secretary after a scan of his vital organs came back "pristine."