Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg revealed she’s battling cancer once again, after previously fighting the disease four times.
“I began a course of chemotherapy (gemcitabine) to treat a recurrence of cancer,” Ginsburg, 87, said in a statement released by the court on Friday, July 17, noting her treatment began in May after a biopsy in February revealed she had lesions on her liver.
The My Own Words author, who has been on the Supreme Court since 1993, explained that her May hospitalization due to a gallstone infection was “unrelated to this recurrence.” At the time, the Supreme Court reported that the justice underwent a nonsurgical treatment for acute cholecystitis, which is a benign gallbladder condition.
The justice outlined her plan of attack for the disease, in her Friday statement, saying that chemotherapy is “yielding positive results,” which is why she chose to disclose her illness at this time.
“Satisfied that my treatment course is now clear, I am providing this information,” she explained, noting her July 7 scan showed a “significant reduction of the liver lesions and no new disease.”
Ginsburg added: “I am tolerating chemotherapy well and am encouraged by the success of my current treatment. I will continue bi-weekly chemotherapy to keep my cancer at bay, and am able to maintain an active daily routine.”
The longtime public servant said that her sickness will not affect her ability to do her job.
“Throughout, I have kept up with opinion writing and all other Court work,” she explained. “I have often said I would remain a member of the Court as long as I can do the job full steam. I remain fully able to do that.”
Ginsburg’s announcement came three days after she was admitted to John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland on Tuesday, July 14, for treatment of a possible infection.
“She was initially evaluated at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington, D.C. last night after experiencing fever and chills,” the court said in a statement at the time. “She underwent an endoscopic procedure at Johns Hopkins this afternoon to clean out a bile duct stent that was placed last August. The Justice is resting comfortably and will stay in the hospital for a few days to receive intravenous antibiotic treatment.”
The iconic political figure most recently overcame cancer in August 2019 after undergoing surgery to remove two malignant growths from her left lung in December 2018.
Ginsburg previously overcame colon cancer in 1999 and pancreatic cancer 10 years later. She also fractured three ribs in November 2018 after a fall at her Supreme Court office.
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