Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee diagnosed with pancreatic cancer

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, Democrat of Texas, announced that she had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

“My doctors have confirmed my diagnosis of pancreatic cancer,” Rep. Jackson Lee, 74, said Sunday evening. “I am currently undergoing treatment to combat this disease that affects tens of thousands of Americans each year.”

Because of her upcoming treatments, Jackson Lee said she may occasionally miss legislative votes, but she is “committed” to working with House Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on a legislation “critical to the prosperity and security of the American people.”

“I am confident that my doctors have developed the best possible plan to target my specific illness,” Jackson Lee said in his statement. “The road ahead will not be easy, but I have faith that God will strengthen me.”

Jackson Lee, who represents Texas’ 18th District, which includes parts of Houston, recently won a primary election to regain his seat. This comes after Jackson Lee lost his bid for mayor of the city late last year.

A member of the Congressional Black Caucus, she has served in Congress for approximately 30 years. Most recently, Jackson Lee reintroduced the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act in May.

Jackson Lee serves on the House Judiciary and Homeland Security committees.

She is also a public education advocate who has asked the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights to conduct a Title VI investigation into last year’s takeover of the Houston Independent School District.

The congresswoman suggested that the overhaul of the nation’s eighth-largest district could be based on race and have repercussions across the country.

“This doesn’t help our families,” Jackson Lee told ABC News in March after learning that Houston public school teachers were resigning. “This doesn’t help our children. This is our number one priority, so I will work with them until the end until we succeed in bringing back an elected board of directors and governance that benefits from the contribution of our parents and our teachers so that They can do what is best for them. the well-being of our children,” she added.

More than 80 percent of HISD students are black and Hispanic, according to school district data. Title VI of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin.