The beloved Boston mayor had been fighting an aggressive and rare form of cancer since January.
During Game 1 of the American League Division Series at Fenway Park on Oct. 4, 2013, in Boston.
Getty Images Jim Rogash
Thomas Menino, 71, died Thursday after battling cancer for months, Boston's WCVB reported. Menino was diagnosed with an advanced cancer shortly after retiring from office in January. The cancer had spread to his liver.
Menino is Boston's longest-serving mayor, and was elected in 1994 after serving the city for almost a decade as a city councillor. He's credited with revitalizing Boston's urban infrastructure. According to polls, more than half of Boston had actually met Menino in person.
Menino began chemotherapy in early March. He then suspended cancer treatments last week. A spokesperson at the time said that he was "resting comfortably."
On Wednesday afternoon, the head of the Boston Archdiocese, Cardinal Sean O'Malley, visited with Menino at Brigam and Women's Hospital in Boston, where Menino had been in hospice care.
According to a spokesperson, Menino died Thursday morning surrounded by his wife, Angela, his family, and his friends. The family is currently making arrangements for services that will be announced soon.