Steve Scalise is a current United States House of Representatives member from Louisiana. A Republican, he was elected to Congress from the state's 1st District, located in Louisiana's southeast.
Several politicians elected from the District have become high-profile names. For his part, Scalise has continued the pattern. He is, at present, the majority leader of the House of Representatives. But he also has some other significant issues going on.
Steve Scalise announces that he has cancer
Steve Scalise has been diagnosed with multiple myeloma. Multiple myeloma is a form of blood cancer that develops in antibody-producing plasma cells.
Scalise said that he'd been feeling "not like myself" recently. After undergoing medical testing, he received the diagnosis.
Scalise has begun undergoing treatment and indicated that he intends to continue working for now. He made a point to describe multiple myeloma as being "a very treatable blood cancer." That is true, particularly in the context of forms of cancer. However, patients diagnosed with it generally don't ever really go into remission. Instead, they are typically expected to have the disease on some level for the rest of their lives.
It's not the first time he has faced serious health challenges in recent years. In 2017, Scalise was shot and suffered near-fatal injuries while practicing for an upcoming baseball game.
Well-wishers expressed their support on a bipartisan basis for Scalise. Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden called him personally to give support. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also said those at the White House were praying for him.
Scalise was first elected to the U.S. House in a 2008 special election. His predecessor, Republican Bobby Jindal, had been elected governor of Louisiana.
Scalise has been re-elected eight times since then.
In 2014, he was selected as the new House majority whip. He became the House minority whip five years later. Scalise became the majority leader in early 2023.
He is a former state legislator
Steve Scalise is a native of New Orleans. He is the great-grandson of Italian immigrants.
Scalise attended Archbishop Rummel High School in nearby Metairie, followed by Louisiana State University. It would be a short time before he entered politics.
In 1995, Scalise was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives. He would be re-elected to his seat in 1999 and 2003. Scalise won a race to join the Louisiana State Senate four years later. But his time in the Senate would be brief, as he left to join Congress.
Scalise married Jennifer Letulle in 2005. They have two children.
