WASHINGTON – Cancer has interrupted MasterCard's plan to conduct its initial public offering of stock in the first quarter of 2006, according to a letter from MasterCard CEO Robert Selander to MasterCard shareholders. In his letter, Selander said that he has been diagnosed with early-state prostate cancer, had already had surgery and that his prognosis is "excellent". "While I have already resumed my normal responsibilities, I have been advised not to undertake a demanding travel schedule, such as a road show, over the next couple of months. We expect that this, combined with the timelines for our first quarter results, will mean a delay in our transition to a new structure until the second quarter of 2006," Selander wrote. MasterCard's offering is expected to bring in $2.5 billion, money that will help it weather the more than 40 different lawsuits against both it and Visa over the interchange and other card policies. Further, the IPO is the last step in overall restructuring of the card brand as a public company.