'Doctors said he might not be able to speak for a week or so after the surgery, but he can speak properly already,' she said, adding her husband would resume work on Monday.

She said the tumour was detected during a check-up Suen had while recovering from legionnaires' disease, which he contracted in December that led to a 12-day hospital stay.

Thyroid is an organ at the base of the throat that makes hormones to help regulate heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature and weight. Thyroid cancer is not common in Hong Kong. Women or older people tend to have a higher chance of developing the cancer, according to the Hospital Authority.

Suen's latest health scare had been kept secret until a media report yesterday said he had been admitted to hospital on Tuesday because of the thyroid problem.

Questioned by the media on Wednesday, Suen's wife said only that her husband was in hospital for a regular check-up.

It is the third time in four weeks that Suen has been in hospital.

Late last month he broke his arm in a fall at home. Days later, he was back in hospital for hernia repair surgery. Suen's health has prompted widespread speculation that he might seek early retirement.

But his wife rejected any suggestions her husband could not finish his term, which ends on June 30. 'He still has a lot of work to do. And he is in good spirits and looks healthier than me.'

Suen was expected to be discharged today, after another magnetic resonance imaging scan.

Suen is the oldest member in the cabinet of Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen.

Public concerns about his health rose after a media disclosure in April last year that he had been battling kidney failure and had been undergoing dialysis at home since October 2010. Early last year he underwent a hernia operation. In December he contracted legionnaires' disease after moving into the new government headquarters in Admiralty.