PHNOM PENH, April 10 -- Cambodia's King Norodom Sihamoni has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and will stay in China for prolonged treatment, he said in a statement today.

Doctors in Beijing "have confirmed that currently I have prostate cancer", the 72-year-old king said in a statement to his country, adding that doctors have prescribed hospitalisation of up to two months for treatment.

Sihamoni departed for Beijing for hospital checks over a month ago.

A lifelong bachelor who speaks French, Czech and English, Sihamoni spent most of his adult life abroad pursuing a career in the arts before taking the throne in 2004.

He took over the role after his father King Norodom Sihanouk abdicated following his own cancer treatment in Beijin...