Raskin ‘very optimistic’ after cancer diagnosis

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said Sunday that he is “very optimistic” in the wake of being diagnosed with cancer, adding that he is “hanging tough.”

“I’m losing about 40 or 50 hairs a day, I would think, to chemo. So that’s upsetting,” Raskin said in an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union.” “But, otherwise, I’m hanging tough. And the doctors are very optimistic and I’m very optimistic that the chemo is going to get the cancer.”

Raskin announced at the end of December that he had been diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, which he said is a “serious but curable form of cancer.” He also revealed at the time of the announcement that he would be starting chemo-immunotherapy.

“Prognosis for most people in my situation is excellent after four months of treatment,” Raskin said in the December statement. 

He has continued to work through his treatment. 

Raskin, the ranking member on the House Oversight and Reform Committee, said on Sunday Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), the chair of the committee, has been “very kind to me,” and thanked Republicans for their support.

“I have gotten lots of support across the aisle and from all my colleagues, and I’m very grateful for that,” Raskin said in the CNN interview.