BEIRUT - Syrian first lady Asma al-Assad has started treatment for early stage breast cancer, Syrian state media reported on Wednesday. A photo published by the state news agency SANA and the Syrian presidency showed Asma al-Assad, 42, hooked up to a drip smiling and sitting next to her husband President Bashar al-Assad in what appeared to be a hospital room. 'Asma al-Assad begins the first stage of treatment for a malignant tumor of the breast which was discovered early,' said a statement issued on the presidency's Telegram feed. A former investment banker, Asma al-Assad was born and raised in London to Syrian parents. She married Assad in 2000.
