Longtime 'Jeopardy!' host Alex Trebek has been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer, he announced in a video message Wednesday.
Trebek told viewers he wanted fans of the show to hear the news directly from him, saying he "wanted to prevent you from reading or hearing some overblown or inaccurate reports regarding my health."
Though the survival rate for stage 4 pancreatic cancer is low, Trebek vowed to keep fighting and keep working on Jeopardy.
"I plan to beat the low survival rate statistics for this disease. Truth told, I have to! Because under the terms of my contract, I have to host Jeopardy! for three more years!" he quipped.
Trebek has been the host of 'Jeopardy!' since it was revived in 1984. A Candadian native, he became a naturalized US citizen in 1998.
Here is the full text of Trebek's message:
Hi everyone, I have some news to share with all of you and it’s in keeping with my longtime policy of being open and transparent with our Jeopardy! fan base. I also wanted to prevent you from reading or hearing some overblown or inaccurate reports regarding my health. So therefore, I wanted to be the one to pass along this information. Now, just like 50,000 other people in the United States each year, this week I was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. Now normally, the prognosis for this is not very encouraging, but I’m going to fight this, and I’m going to keep working. And with the love and support of my family and friends and with the help of your prayers also, I plan to beat the low survival rate statistics for this disease. Truth told, I have to! Because under the terms of my contract, I have to host Jeopardy! for three more years! So help me. Keep the faith and we’ll win. We’ll get it done. Thank you." Alex Trebek Culver City, California March 6, 2019