‘Jeopardy!’ host Alex Trebek, 78, in a fight against stage 4 pancreatic cancer is headed toward remission, he tells People Magazine in a cover story to be published in full Friday.
“It’s kind of mind-boggling,” he told the magazine. “The doctors said they hadn’t seen this kind of positive result in their memory…some of the tumors have already shrunk by more than 50 percent.”
Pancreatic cancer, particularly when diagnosed in its late stages, typically has a low survival rate.
Trebek, who is on hiatus from the popular game show he hosts, still has several more rounds of chemotherapy to go, he says.
He also expressed thanks to all of his fans and well-wishers: “I’ve got a couple million people out there who have expressed their good thoughts, their positive energy directed towards me and their prayers. I told the doctors, this has to be more than just the chemo, and they agreed it could very well be an important part of this.”
Meanwhile, Jeopardy! has been on a serious ratings roll with super-player James Holzhauer on the cusp of breaking Ken Jennings’ all-time cash-winning record of $2.5 million in regular play. In the week ended May 5, the game show hit a 14-year high 8.3 live plus same day national household rating, according to Nielsen Media Research.
Jeopardy! is produced by Sony Pictures Television and executive produced by Harry Friedman. CBS Television Distribution distributes the show in broadcast syndication.
