BRUSSELS: European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has cut short a holiday to have his gallbladder surgically removed, the EU executive body said Saturday.

Sixty-four-year-old Juncker "had to shorten his holiday in Austria for medical reasons. He was taken back to Luxembourg where he will undergo an urgent cholecystectomy (surgical removal of the gallbladder)," the commission said in a statement.

The former Luxembourg prime minister has led the commission since 2014. His mandate ends in October.

According to Britain's NHS website, gallbladder removal is a common procedure -- often performed when people develop painful gallstones.