HOUSTON -- Former Gov. Mark White underwent successful surgery at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center on Thursday to remove a cancerous kidney and is recuperating well, according to a former staffer.

Ann Arnold, White's former press secretary, said White "had some problems" before the holidays and sought medical attention. Tests revealed renal cell carcinoma, or kidney cancer, and White was scheduled for laparoscopic surgery Thursday morning.

Arnold said White, 66, was in good spirits when she and other friends spoke with him at his Houston home on Wednesday night. He reported to the hospital at 5 a.m. and was in surgery two hours later to have the cancerous left kidney removed.

Arnold said White's wife, Linda Gale, told her that the surgery was a success and that the former governor was doing well after the operation.

White, a native of Henderson, Texas, was governor from 1983 to 1987. A Democrat, he also served as secretary of state and attorney general.