Actor Dennis Hopper battling prostate cancer

LOS ANGELES (Reuters Life!) - Actor Dennis Hopper is suffering from prostate cancer and cancelling all travel plans to focus on his treatment, his manager told media on Thursday.

Hopper, 73, was released from hospital earlier this month after his manager Sam Maydew said he checked in with flu-like symptoms during a trip to New York and was treated for dehydration.

But Maydew on Thursday was quoted on entertainment website E! Online saying that Hopper has prostate cancer and is undergoing treatment at the University of Southern California.

"We're hoping for the best," said Maydew.

Hopper has been forced to cancel his appearance at an exhibition at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image in Melbourne entitled "Dennis Hopper And The New Hollywood," a collection of his artwork and photography.

In a statement issued from his Los Angeles home, Hopper said he was very disappointed at not being able to travel to Melbourne, but was fully focused on his treatment.

"Obviously his health is the number one priority and we wish him a very speedy recovery," ACMI director Tony Sweeney told local media.

Hopper, whose long list of movie credits includes "Easy Rider", "Blue Velvet", and "Apocalypse Now", is currently appearing in a television adaptation of the 2004 Oscar-winning film "Crash".

(Editing by Belinda Goldsmith)