Ginsburg treated for tumor, cancer-free

WASHINGTON — Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has completed radiation therapy for a cancerous tumor on her pancreas and there is no evidence of the disease remaining, the Supreme Court said Friday.

It is the fourth time that the 86-year-old justice has announced that she has been treated for cancer over the past two decades and follows lung cancer surgery in December that kept her away from the court for weeks. December’s surgery was her first illness-related absence from the court since being appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1993.

The Supreme Court said in a statement Friday that a routine blood test led to the detection of Ginsburg’s tumor. A biopsy performed July 31 confirmed a “localized malignant tumor,” and Ginsburg started outpatient radiation therapy Aug. 5. Ginsburg underwent three weeks of radiation therapy and as part of her treatment had a bile duct stent placed, the court said. Ginsburg “tolerated treatment well” and does not need any additional treatment but will continue to have periodic blood tests and scans, the statement said.

The tumor was “treated definitively and there is no evidence of disease elsewhere in the body,” the court said.

As the court’s oldest member, Ginsburg is frequently asked questions about her health and retirement plans. Both liberals and conservatives watch her health closely because it’s understood the court would shift right for decades if President Donald Trump becomes able to nominate her replacement.