Vice President Joe Biden's son has died after suffering from brain cancer, according to a statement released by the White House Saturday evening.

Beau Biden, who formerly served as Delaware's attorney general and had a promising career ahead of him in Democratic party politics, lived a life "defined by service to others," the vice president said in the statement.

"The entire Biden family is saddened beyond words. We know that Beau’s spirit will live on in all of us," Joe Biden added.

The 46-year-old who died Saturday at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center was a decorated Iraq War veteran. The Bronze Star awardee, and major in the Delaware National Guard, had a string of health issues prior to his death. He was first diagnosed with brain cancer in 2013.

This isn't the first personal tragedy to befall the Biden family. Joe Biden's first wife and 1-year-old daughter died in a December car crash a week before Christmas in 1972, a month after he was elected to the Senate. Beau Biden and his brother, Hunter, were in the car at the time. They were both injured, but survived after the family car was hit by a truck. In January 1973, the elder Biden was sworn into the Senate at Beau Biden's hospital bedside.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, right, is seen with his son, U.S. Army Capt. Beau Biden, left, at Camp Victory on the outskirts of Baghdad, on July 04, 2009. Image: KHALID MOHAMMED/AFP/Getty Images

Beau Biden was hospitalized earlier this month at Walter Reed, but the vice president's office was mum on the cause at the time. In 2010, he suffered a mild stroke, which became a reminder to maintain a work-life balance. Many remembered him as a dedicated father and husband who encouraged others to make family a priority.

“More than his professional accomplishments, Beau measured himself as a husband, father, son and brother," his father said.

After his cancer diagnosis, Beau Biden had surgery at a Texas cancer center in August 2013 to remove a so-called lesion. Radiation treatment and chemotherapy followed. Doctors told him he was in remission three months later, but then the cancer came back this spring. He was admitted to Walter Reed again in May, officials said.

President Barack Obama called Beau Biden a friend, one of the "strongest men" he and the first lady have ever known, and described how he took after his father in a statement.

"Like his dad, Beau was a good, big-hearted, devoutly Catholic and deeply faithful man, who made a difference in the lives of all he touched – and he lives on in their hearts," Obama said.

The vice president and his son, his eldest of three children, were exceptionally close—Beau Biden often described his dad as his hero and the elder Biden called his son "a role model" after he died. Beau Biden introduced the vice president at the 2008 and 2012 Democratic National Conventions. It was after his 2008 speech that his national political prowess began to take shape.

During his 2012 speech, the younger Biden discussed his most memorable moment, at the time, since his father and Obama took office. While stationed in Iraq with the army on Independence Day 2009, Beau Biden got to watch his father lead a group of people as they took the oath of citizenship for the United States at one of Saddam Hussein's former palaces in Iraq.

"I was reminded why we as a nation are stronger when everyone has a chance to do their part," Beau Biden said.

The former Delaware attorney general announced last year that he would not seek a third term, but he still planned a run for governor in 2016.

As attorney general, Beau Biden established a child predator unit, joined other attorneys general in taking on mortgage lenders over foreclosure abuses, proposed tougher bail restrictions for criminal defendants, and defended the death penalty, putting him at odds with some fellow Democrats.

But a spate of shootings in his hometown of Wilmington went largely unabated during his tenure, and his office stumbled in some high-profile murder prosecutions.

Army National Guard Capt. Beau Biden hugs wife Hallie as he arrives with fellow troops from a tour in Irag Friday, Sept. 25, 2009, at Fort Dix, N.J. Image: Mel Evans/Associated Press

"Beau embodied my father's saying that a parent knows success when his child turns out better than he did," the vice president said. "In the words of the Biden family: Beau Biden was, quite simply, the finest man any of us have ever known."

Tributes and condolences from politicos, reporters and the public gushed on social media after news of his death broke.

My heart is broken for the family of Beau Biden—a wonderful man who served his country with devotion and lived his life with courage. -H — Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) May 30 2015

My entire family is shattered by his death.​ — Gov. Jack Markell (@GovernorMarkell) May 30 2015

From the entire Cheney family - our deepest sympathy and heartfelt prayers to the @VP Biden family. — Liz Cheney (@Liz_Cheney) May 30 2015

It is with great sorrow and heavy hearts that we share the news of the loss of a great leader, Maj. Beau Biden. — Del National Guard (@DelawareNG) May 30 2015

Beau Biden was a throughly admirable man. Great husband, father, son, veteran and public servant. My heart aches for the Biden family. — David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) May 30 2015

Our thoughts & condolences are w/ @VP Biden, his family, & loved ones during this difficult time. Sending our love & prayers from #Boston. — Mayor Marty Walsh (@marty_walsh) May 31, 2015

My heart is breaking for the Biden family. Beau represented all that is good about Delaware and our country. I will miss him greatly. — Senator Tom Carper (@SenatorCarper) May 31, 2015

Beau was a wonderful, strong and courageous man. I thought the world of him. Our deepest condolences to the Biden family in this tragic time — Senator Harry Reid (@SenatorReid) May 30 2015

Beau Biden's full name was Joseph Robinette Biden III. He is survived by his wife, Hallie, and their two children, Natalie and Hunter.

Additional reporting by The Associated Press.