With Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg continuing to recover from cancer surgery, whispers about whether she should step down have grown louder. But as a member of the Supreme Court with life tenure, Ginsburg can remain on the bench for as long as she desires, no matter how sick she becomes.

Ginsburg had surgery Dec. 21 to remove two malignant nodules found in her left lung and has been recuperating at her home ever since. The procedure kept Ginsburg off the bench on Monday and Tuesday, marking the first time she missed oral arguments in her 25-year tenure on the Supreme Court.

Though she was not present for oral arguments, Chief Justice John Roberts said Ginsburg would participate in the cases by reading briefs and argument transcripts.

In addition to reviewing relevant case material from home, Ginsburg has also voted in matters before the court. There is no written rule prohibiting justices who are missing from the bench from casting their votes.

Before her cancer surgery last month, for example, Ginsburg voted remotely to deny a request from the Trump administration to enforce its new asylum policy, according to reports.

At 85, Ginsburg is not the oldest justice to have served on the high court and is not the only one to have battled illness during their tenure.

Justices Oliver Wendell Holmes and John Paul Stevens both retired at 90, and Chief Justice William Rehnquist served on the Supreme Court until his death in September 2005, nearly one year after he was diagnosed with thyroid cancer.

Rehnquist, like Ginsburg, also worked from his home while recovering in October 2004 from a tracheotomy in connection with his cancer diagnosis.

At the time, Stevens, who presided over the court during Rehnquist's absence, said Rehnquist "reserves the right" to vote in cases before the court, including those in which he was not present for oral arguments.

Ginsburg has also battled cancer twice before. In 1999, she was treated for colon cancer, and in 2009, she was treated for pancreatic cancer.