Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg says she’s receiving treatment for liver cancer
WASHINGTON – Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg announced Friday she is battling cancer again, just days after she was hospitalized for a possible infection.
The 87-year-old Ginsburg, a four-time cancer survivor who announced in January that she was cancer-free, said a periodic scan and a biopsy revealed lesions on her liver, but chemotherapy treatment that began in May is “yielding positive results.” Her most recent scan last week showed “significant reduction” of the lesions, the justice said in a brief statement.
“I am tolerating chemotherapy well and am encouraged by the success of my current treatment,” Ginsburg said. “I will continue bi-weekly chemotherapy to keep my cancer at bay, and am able to maintain an active daily routine. Throughout, I have kept up with opinion writing and all other court work.”
This is Ginsburg’s fifth bout with cancer, following colon cancer in 1999, pancreatic cancer in 2009, lung cancer in 2018 and more pancreatic cancer last year. Still, she said she would stay on the court “as long as I can do the job full steam,” a phrase she has used many times in the past.
For years, Ginsburg’s health has been a concern for Democrats who worry that the high court’s 5-4 conservative majority could be expanded if she were to leave the bench before the November presidential election. Even if Democrats sweep to victories, Republicans will control the Senate at least until Jan. 3, and President Donald Trump will be in office at least until Jan. 20.
More:Supreme Court Justices Gorsuch, Kavanaugh display independent streaks
Ginsburg said her recent hospitalizations to remove gall stones and treat an infection were unrelated to her cancer.
Ginsburg was taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore earlier this week after she experienced fever and chills. She was treated for an infection and underwent an endoscopic procedure to clean out a bile duct stent that was inserted last August.
She had been hospitalized in May following an infection caused by a benign gallbladder condition, the Supreme Court said.
Leader of the liberals
Ginsburg, the second-longest-serving justice on the bench, was nominated by President Bill Clinton in 1993. She is the leader of the court’s liberal wing, which includes Associate Justices Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan.
That group is outnumbered by five conservative justices, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, who has become the center of the court. To his right are Associate Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.
More:Year of surprise Supreme Court rulings shows influence of Chief Justice John Roberts
Should a vacancy occur on the court while Trump and Republicans remain in power, the leading candidates likely are federal appeals court judges Amul Thapar of Kentucky and Amy Coney Barrett of Indiana.
Known fondly to her vast network of supporters as simply “RBG” or the “Notorious RBG,” Ginsburg emerged from three weeks of radiation treatment for pancreatic cancer last fall by traveling the nation giving speeches, staging conversations and accepting awards and honorary degrees.
“As cancer survivors know, that dread disease is a challenge, and it helps to know that people are rooting for you. Now, it’s not universal,” she quipped in September at the famed 92nd Street Y in New York City. She vowed to stay on the job “as long as I’m healthy and mentally agile.”
Ginsburg must remain on the nation’s highest court at least until January to avoid giving Trump and a Republican-controlled Senate the opportunity to replace her. Such a scenario could give conservatives a 6-3 hold on the high court – solidifying their majority, perhaps for decades to come.
