Venezuela's Chavez Tells State TV He's Doing Well Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has made his first live communication with his country's news media since surgery to remove a possibly cancerous tumor. A mural of Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, left, and Cuba's revolutionary hero Ernesto 'Che' Guevara covers a wall in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday Feb. 29, 2012. Chavez underwent surgery Monday in Havana and aides said he was recovering well after a one-inch (two-centimeter) lesion was removed from the same part of the body where a larger, malignant tumor was taken out last summer. There has been no confirmation that the new tumor is cancerous. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) Close Chavez tells state television on Thursday he is doing well and is recovering from this week's operation.