NATCHEZ — Larry L. “Butch” Brown is back home and cancer-free.

Brown’s doctors delivered the good news Friday before he left M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston for Natchez.

“(The news) made the ride home kind of nice,” he said.

Doctors performed surgery on Brown Jan. 21 to treat a third reoccurrence of cancer in his prostate.

Brown was first diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2008. He discovered the cancer was back for a third time during a routine doctor visit in October of last year.

Brown said it is good to be back in Natchez after spending much of the last five weeks in Houston.

“Anytime you can be in your own home with your own surroundings, it gives you a lift,” he said.

Brown said his doctors have asked him to rest and avoid too much movement since he still has some bleeding due to complicated, post-surgical procedures.

He will report back to M.D. Anderson Monday for more testing.

“It’s a cumbersome long ride, and it hurts, but the doctors did what I wanted them to do (by getting rid of the cancer), and I’ll go to Kalamazoo if that’s what they want me to do,” Brown said.

Brown said he has been working from the phone, fax and e-mail to make certain his medical insurance has a seamless transition from his Mississippi Department of Transportation plan to private insurance.

The three-member Transportation Commission voted 2-1 last Tuesday to release Brown as head of the MDOT.

He said he is fortunate to have many friends assisting him in expediting his health care policy changes before his MDOT coverage stops at end of this month.

Brown said as far as moving forward, he still has business interests and enjoys “doing deals.”

“I’ll be getting my ear back to the ground,” he said.

At moment, however, Brown said he is focused on his health and family.