I'm no ghost MP, says Quebec NDP politician

A Member of Parliament in central Quebec who is undergoing treatment for cancer says a recent news report accusing her of not being present in her riding was unfair.

The New Democratic Party's Lise St-Denis, 71, is the MP for Saint-Maurice-Champlain, but lives in Montreal.

A recent TV report called her ''a ghost MP,'' with a vague work plan. St-Denis said the accusation is unacceptable because she has been away from her riding to receive treatment and recouperate.

St-Denis was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in April, a few days before the federal election.

She said she missed the last session of parliament because of it.

"Tiredness was a side-effect, that's why I stayed home a little bit, just to rest,'' said St-Denis.

St-Denis says she gave an interview to TVA in July and she said she doesn't understand why the report accused her of not spending enough time in her riding.

"All MPs sometimes, they can be absent from their riding for a week or two - it's not awful I would say," St-Denis told CBC News.

The report also claimed that some people in the riding have complained about St-Denis' two-week absence but she said no one has complained to her directly.

St-Denis said she feels good, but a little more tired than usual.

She said she will now have treatments only once every three months but her prognosis is good and doesn't expect her illness to affect her work.