MEXICO CITY – Actor Jorge Vargas died at a Mexico City hospital after a long battle with cancer, the artist’s family said Tuesday. He was 68.

In a statement on Televisa television, Ernesto D’Alessio said that he was reconciled to his father’s death, brought on by an infection following an operation for colon cancer.

“They operated on him Thursday and he reacted well. The problem is that when there is an operation of this kind on the colon and other intestines, it’s very probable that a bacteria could get in and cause such a powerful infection that it ended my dad’s life,” Ernest, the son of Vargas and his first wife, actress and singer Lupita D’Alessio, said.

The actor did not reveal his illness until the end of September.

Born on June 25, 1941, Jorge Vargas debuted as an actor with the film “El Precio de la Gloria” (The Price of Glory), followed by such movies as “Por un Puñado de Tierra” (For a Handful of Dirt) and “Duro y Furioso” (Tough and Furious).

He developed a highly successful television career with parts in telenovelas like “Maria Isabel,” “Apuesta por un Amor” (Betting on Love) and other popular soaps of the 1970s. EFE