Beau, son of US vice-president, dies of brain cancer

Beau Biden, former attorney-general of Delaware and son of Joe Biden, vice-president of the United States (US), has lost his two-year battle with brain cancer at the age of 46.

Beau suffered known health problems dating back to 2010, when he experienced a stroke that did not affect his motor skills or speech.

In 2013, he was treated at M.D. Anderson Cancer Centre in Houston after he became disoriented and weak while on vacation.

He was diagnosed with brain cancer, and after undergoing surgery was given a clean bill of health.

The cancer returned earlier in the month and he received treatment at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland and died late Saturday.

“It is with broken hearts that Hallie, Hunter, Ashley, Jill and I announce the passing of our husband, brother and son, Beau, after he battled brain cancer with the same integrity, courage and strength he demonstrated every day of his life,” said Joe, who was at his son’s side at the time of his death, along with the rest of the Biden family.

“The entire Biden family is saddened beyond words. We know that Beau’s spirit will live on in all of us — especially through his brave wife, Hallie, and two remarkable children.

“More than his professional accomplishments, Beau measured himself as a husband, father, son and brother.

“His absolute honour made him a role model for our family. Beau embodied my father’s saying that a parent knows success when his child turns out better than he did.

“In the words of the Biden family: Beau Biden was, quite simply, the finest man any of us have ever known.”

President Barack Obama said he and his wife, Michelle, were grieving alongside the Biden family.

“Michelle and I humbly pray for the good Lord to watch over Beau Biden, and to protect and comfort his family here on Earth,” Obama said in a separate statement.

A University of Pennsylvania graduate, Beau earned a law degree from Syracuse University.

He was a law clerk for a federal judge in New Hampshire before joining the US justice department from 1995 until 2002, including five years as a federal prosecutor in Philadelphia.

In 2001, he volunteered for an interim assignment training judges and prosecutors in postwar Kosovo.

Beau served a yearlong deployment in Iraq and was awarded a Bronze Star.

He is survived by his wife, Hallie, and children Natalie, 11, and Hunter, 9, along with his parents, a brother and sister, a sister-in-law and brother-in-law, and three nieces.

Funeral arrangements have not been announced.