Alex Trebek Regrets Going Public With Cancer Diagnosis, Says He’s Not Afraid To Die

Alex Trebek

Alex Trebek Regrets Going Public With Cancer Diagnosis, Says He’s Not Afraid To Die

Alex Trebek seems to be at peace with his cancer diagnosis and what it could mean for his future. The iconic host of long-running gameshow “Jeopardy!”, who revealed he had stage 4 pancreatic cancer in March, has opened up about the decline of his health since he was originally diagnosed. He said during an interview.

“I’m not afraid of dying. I’ve lived a good life, a full life, and I’m nearing the end of that life… it if happens, why should I be afraid of that? One thing they’re not going to say at my funeral, as part of a eulogy, is ‘He was taken from us too soon.'”

Alex Trebek seemed to beat the condition after going into remission in May, following a round of chemotherapy. But he was then told he would need more chemotherapy, which he said shocked him.

“Yup, (I) went all the way down to numbers that correspond with a normal human being without cancer. Then all of a sudden, it blew up and went 50 percent higher than when it was first diagnosed. Go figure. I’m hanging in. So we’re back on the chemo and we’ll see if the numbers go down. And if they do… they can’t keep doing it forever of course. They’ll have to find a new protocol or whatever to administer. We’ll play it by ear and keep chugging along until we either win or lose.”

Trebek added that he does have regrets about being so public with his diagnosis. He announced the news on the set of “Jeopardy!” shortly after he found out.

Trebek, who has hosted the show for 36 series and nearly 8,000 shows, now says,

“There’s a little too much Alex Trebek out there. A lot of people are coming to me and looking for help, reassurance — and that’s tough.”

He said it’s hard

 “trying to be as optimistic as you can when the other person feels none of that … they feel only despair. And I don’t know if I was strong enough or intelligent enough to help alleviate that despair.”

As for his future on “Jeopardy!” he said he’s taking it one step at a time.

“I will keep doing it as long as my skills do not diminish, and they have started to diminish. I’m sure there are observant members of the television audience that notice also, but they’re forgiving. But there will come a point when [fans and producers] will no longer be able to say, ‘It’s okay.’”

Still, his wife, Jean Currivan Trebek, has been by his side the whole time, helping to give him the strength to keep going.

“She gives it more to me. [She’s always there] when I’m going through a bad experience. But I know (the children) care and I know the one thing that upsets them is that I’m not as communicative as I should be.”

Let’s continue to pray for a full recovery for Alex Trebek!