LOS ANGELES – Longtime Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek announced Wednesday that he has been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
Trebek, 78, has hosted the popular game show since it was revived in 1984. He recently signed a contract extension to continue hosting Jeopardy! through 2022.
Although he says his prognosis is not very encouraging, Trebek says he intends to remain the host of the show through the current season. Any plans after this season remain up in the air.
"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," said Trebek in a video post released by the show.
In December 2017, Trebek took a medical leave from the show after undergoing surgery to remove blood clots from his brain following a fall at his home. As Jeopardy! films its episodes months in advance, scheduling was not affected during last year's season.
Trebek was born in Canada, but became a U.S. citizen in 1998.
Jeopardy! can been seen weeknights on Local 10 at 7:30 p.m.