Ruth Bader Ginsburg Undergoing Chemotherapy Amid Cancer Recurrence; Will Remain on Court

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg is undergoing chemotherapy to treat a recurrence of cancer. The 87-year-old shared the news on Friday.

The treatment is yielding "positive results," and she says that she is "fully able" to continue her work on the court.

Ginsberg has had several bouts with cancer. She was treated for colon cancer in 1999, had tumors taken out of a lung in 2018, and she had radiation therapy for pancreatic cancer in 2019, CNN reports. 

She began her treatment in mid-May the court says after a biopsy revealed lesions on her liver back in February.

"My most recent scan on July 7 indicated significant reduction of the liver lesions and no new disease," Ginsberg said in a statement shared by the court. "I am tolerating chemotherapy well and am encouraged by the success of my current treatment."

The Supreme Court Justice says she will continue bi-weekly chemotherapy treatments to keep "the cancer at bay."

"I... am able to maintain an active daily routine. Throughout, I have kept up with opinion writing and all other Court work," she says.

The court's announcement says that the news of the cancer diagnosis is unrelated to a reported hospitalization earlier this week.

The 87-year-old was treated at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore for a reported fever and chills. She underwent an "endoscopic procedures to clean out a bile duct stent that was placed last August," according to a statement issued by the court on Tuesday. 

"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," Ginsberg said on Friday.