McCain recovering after prostate surgery

Sen. McCain, speaking to reporters outside the Mayo Clinic Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, on Wednesday morning, told them that he was "feeling just fine."

PHOENIX, Arizona (CNN) -- Sen. John McCain is "expected to make a full and rapid recovery" after routine prostate surgery Wednesday, his 65th birthday, his office said.

The surgery lasted roughly one hour and went off without a hitch, the senator's office added.

"The procedure was straightforward, with no complications," according to a statement released in Washington. McCain also had some bladder stones removed.

Entering the Mayo Clinic Hospital in Phoenix early Wednesday morning, McCain joked he had found a "great way to have a birthday party," and admitted to feeling "slightly embarrassed" that his prostate surgery had received so much publicity.

The maverick Republican and former presidential candidate said he expected to be released within "a day or so." He said the health matter was not serious.

"This isn't anything in any way life-threatening," McCain said. "This is a benign situation."

McCain had surgery for skin cancer on his face last summer. "This isn't comparable," he said Wednesday.

Reached at the hospital, Cindy McCain, the senator's wife, was also optimistic about her husband's recovery.

"Certainly, surgery is never routine, but it's fine. This is much less serious than last summer," she said.

McCain should be out of the hospital after one or two nights there, according to the statement. He plans to rest at his Arizona home over the weekend and return to Washington next week.

The surgery, called a transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP), is not related to McCain's history of skin cancer. However, the prostate problem was uncovered during a quarterly cancer checkup on Aug. 17, according to sources. That checkup indicated that McCain's body is free of cancer -- marking the fourth check in a row to show him as being cancer-free.

Doctors did discover, however, that McCain's prostate was enlarged and was pressing against his bladder, causing bleeding and the formation of the bladder stones.

Surgeons, led by Dr. Scott Swanson, removed part of McCain's enlarged prostate and performed a cystolithopaxy, in which a laser is used to break up bladder stones so they can be removed without open surgery.

McCain had arrived in Arizona on Tuesday night after wrapping up a whirlwind, five-day trip through Eastern Europe. Cindy McCain said her husband enjoyed an early birthday dinner with his family Tuesday night.

-- CNN Congressional Correspondent Kate Snow in Washington contributed to this report.