Justice Ginsburg Has Surgery To Remove Cancerous Growths

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg underwent surgery Friday to remove two cancerous nodules from her lung. A spokesperson for the Supreme Court said that there was "no evidence of remaining disease" and no evidence of disease "elsewhere in the body" after the surgery.

"Justice Ginsburg is resting comfortably and is expected to remain in the hospital for a few days," the court's public information office reported.

She survived pancreatic cancer thanks to an early diagnosis in 2009, and in 1999 underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiation for colon cancer.

Ginsburg is one of the four liberal members of the Supreme Court, and is somewhat of an icon among progressives. The justice, 85, was hospitalized in November after she fell in her office and broke three ribs. Ginsburg is notorious for maintaining a strenuous exercise regime, but recent health scares such as the broken ribs and Friday's surgeries raise questions about her health and ability to remain on the court.

President Trump has appointed two justices to the Supreme Court, filling seats vacated by the death of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia and retirement of moderate conservative Justice Anthony Kennedy. If Ginsburg were to retire, it would allow Mr. Trump to appoint another conservative justice, further tipping the ideological balance of the court. However, Ginsburg has given no indication that she will be leaving the court while Mr. Trump is in office.