HARRISBURG — Doctors who treat most of the six candidates for governor say they are in excellent health, although half have confronted serious medical problems that include a heart attack, prostate cancer and diabetes, according to a review by The Associated Press.

The health of candidates for elective office — particularly one as central as the governorship — is relevant information voters need to make informed decisions about whom to support.

In Pennsylvania, that fact was vividly driven home on June 14, 1993, when then-Gov. Robert P. Casey and Sen. Arlen Specter both had major surgery.

The AP asked each of this year's gubernatorial candidates — all males between the ages of 49 and 62 — to provide written statements from their physicians about their physical fitness to serve as governor.

Attorney General Tom Corbett, the front-runner in the two-way Republican race, was the only candidate who did not provide a doctor's statement, despite repeated requests over six weeks.

But his campaign confirmed news accounts of at least one medical emergency.

In 1997, Corbett had a mild heart attack on Valentine's Day and underwent an angioplasty to clear a blocked artery. He felt chest pains and drove himself to a Pittsburgh hospital, where he was admitted for three or four days, said campaign spokeswoman Kirsten Page. She said the 60-year-old Corbett has had no subsequent heart problems, but declined to discuss other aspects of his health.

Auditor General Jack Wagner, one of the four Democratic contestants, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2000 and had surgery to remove the gland in 2001.

Wagner "has had absolutely no clinical evidence of a recurrence" of the cancer, and it has not affected his ability to function, wrote Dr. James J. Reilly, his primary-care physician in Pittsburgh for 20 years.

Wagner, who fought in the Vietnam War as a Marine, suffered significant damage to his legs and foot when he was wounded by a grenade or mortar explosion that he never saw. He was 19 at the time.

Democrat Joe Hoeffel, 59, a Montgomery County commissioner and former congressman, was diagnosed with adult-onset diabetes in 1995. He wears a belt-mounted device, smaller than a cell phone, that regulates his insulin levels, said Lou Freimiller, a co-manager of his campaign. Dr. Anthony R. Rodriguez of Willow Grove, Hoeffel's physician for more than 20 years, said his diabetes is "well-controlled."

Dan Onorato, 49, Allegheny County's highest elected official and the Democratic front-runner in the primary, "watches his diet, exercises regularly and has no significant health issues," Dr. Gerald G. Rossman of Pittsburgh, Onorato's doctor for 17 years.

Democrat Anthony Hardy Williams, 53, a state senator from Philadelphia, "has been my patient for the past three years. He has been up to date with all age-appropriate medical screenings and is found to be in excellent health," wrote Dr. Harold Mignott of Philadelphia.

State Rep. Sam Rohrer, 54, Corbett's opponent in the GOP primary, takes medication for high blood pressure but has no other serious medical issues, Dr. Gordon R. Donaldson said.