US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg announced her intention to be back at work for the court’s next public session in Washington, D.C., less than three weeks after surgery for pancreatic cancer.

Justice Ginsburg had her cancer identified in late January during a routine annual physical examination carried out at the National Institute of Health’s Clinical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. The computed tomography performed on her revealed the tumor was 1 cm in diameter and was located in the center of the pancreas.

 

She underwent surgery Thursday at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, where she is currently recuperating. However, she plans to be in court when the justices hear arguments on Feb. 23, Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg said, adding that she had no other information on Ginsburg’s condition. For now, she will remain hospitalized for seven to 10 days, according to her surgeon, Murray Brennan.

 

“This new diagnosis is unfortunate, and we take hope in reports that this was apparently an early stage of disease, and wish her well, offer our support and prayers, and want to encourage her in what we know is going to be a challenging course of therapy,” said Otis W. Brawley, MD, chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society (ACS).

 

Pancreatic cancer is the fourth most common cause of cancer death in the United States after lung, colon and breast cancer, according to estimates of the American Cancer Society. There were 38,000 cases of pancreas cancer diagnosed last year.

 

The disease is hard to diagnose because it has no symptoms in its early stages. There can be pain in the upper abdomen or back, loss of appetite and/or weight loss, nausea and vomiting, jaundice and weakness, but these symptoms are specific to other medical problems as well.