Alex Trebek, the longtime host of the popular television game show “Jeopardy!” credits his faith, and the prayers of his millions of viewers and fans for helping him beat the 18 percent one-year survival rate for stage four pancreatic cancer patients.
“There were moments of great pain, days when certain bodily functions no longer functioned, and sudden massive attacks of great depression that made me wonder if it really was worth fighting on,” Trebek, 79, said in a video posted to his Twitter account in early March. “But I brushed that aside quickly because that would have been a massive betrayal–a betrayal of my wife and soulmate Jean who has given her all to help me survive. And it would certainly have been a betrayal of my faith in God and the millions of prayers that have been said on my behalf.”
Trebek continues to rely on prayer and his faith to keep him motivated and uplifted, which he noted while accepting Fordham University’s Founders’ Award in January. As stated in Fordham News, he said, “If there’s one thing I have discovered in the past year, it is the power of prayer.”
Since announcing his diagnosis in March 2019, the beloved game show host has remained open with his loyal fan base, sharing that he initially responded well to chemotherapy and even neared remission at one point, until his cancer returned in August.
The outpouring of support and well wishes he’s received from people all around the world compelled him to write a book, The Answer Is…: Reflections on My Life. The memoir, which Simon & Schuster announced will be released on July 21, the day before Trebek’s 80th birthday, will combine “illuminating personal anecdotes with Trebek’s thoughts on a range of topics, including marriage, parenthood, education, success, spirituality, and philanthropy.”
In the meantime, Trebek pledges to continue keeping his head up, no matter what the future holds.
“If I, no, if we—because so many of us are involved in this same situation—if we take it just one day at a time with a positive attitude,” he said, “anything is possible.”
