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Alex Trebek Says He Has to ‘Undergo Chemo Again’ After His ‘Numbers Went Sky High’
Just when Alex Trebek thought he was done with chemotherapy, his doctors told him otherwise. In a new interview, the Jeopardy! host opened up about his battle with stage 4 pancreatic cancer and revealed he’s undergoing chemotherapy again.
“I was doing so well. And my numbers went down to the equivalent of a normal human being who does not have pancreatic cancer. So we were all very optimistic,” he recently recalled during an interview on Good Morning America. “And they said, ‘Good, we’re gonna stop chemo, we’ll start you on immunotherapy.'”
However, Alex’s victory was short-lived. “I lost about 12 pounds in a week,” he said. “And my numbers went sky high, much higher than they were when I was first diagnosed. So, the doctors have decided that I have to undergo chemo again and that’s what I’m doing.”
Alex’s battle with cancer has been anything but predictable for him. Some days he wakes up feeling “excruciating pain” and other days he feels “fatigue.” But what he’s still trying to deal with is his overwhelming feeling of depression.
“When it happened early on I was down on myself,” he admitted. “I didn’t realize how fallible each of us is in his or her own way … I talk to the audience sometimes and I get teary-eyed for no reason. I don’t even bother to explain it anymore, I just experience it. I know it’s a part of who I am and I just keep going.”
“Cancer is mysterious in more ways than one,” he added. However, Alex doesn’t have to fight this battle alone. In a previous interview with People, he thanked his wife, Jean Currivan, for always having his back and being his support system through it all.
“My heart goes out to caregivers,” he said. “Because they have to deal with their loved ones suffering and they also don’t always know how to help because there’s not much they can do, except try to make you feel more comfortable, at ease and not worry about ordinary stuff.”
Alex is so lucky to have Jean by his side through this tough time in his life.
