Alex Trebek Clarifies That He Would Return to Chemotherapy, Not Stop Treatment Altogether, If Immunotherapy Stopped Working

Alex Trebek has clarified a comment he made about his cancer treatment, saying now that he would return to chemotherapy, not stop treatment altogether if immunotherapy stopped working for him. Trebek’s new statement was shared on the Jeopardy! Twitter account and addressed a quote from Trebek’s memoir, which he says “was written BEFORE my current regimen.” He explained that he was “going through some bad times” when he penned that.

Trebek went on to state: “My current numbers are very good, but we will have to be patient with this new immunotherapy program that I am on. But, if it were to stop being successful, I would return to my previous chemo treatment, NOT stop all treatment. I apologize for any confusion, and want everyone to know that I am optimistic about my current plan, and thank them for their concerns.” Trebek’s memoir is titled The Answer Is …: Reflections On My Life, and it was released on Tuesday. The book finds Trebek looking back on his 80 years of life, as well as his more recent battle with stage 4 pancreatic cancer.

On Monday, the iconic game show host appeared on Good Morning America to promote the book and shared a little about what the fight against cancer had done to him mentally and emotionally. “There was one day a few weeks ago when Jeanie asked me in the morning, ‘How do you feel?’ And I said, ‘I feel like I wanna die.’ It was that bad,” Trebek said, then calling his wife a “saint” for being so incredibly supportive to him during his difficult illness. “I apologized to her and explain that it has nothing to do with my love for her or my feelings for her. It just has to do with the fact that I feel like I’m a terrible burden to her. And that bothers me tremendously.”

Notably, Trebek is celebrating his 80th birthday on Wednesday, and many fans showered the TV legend with kind comments on social media. In response, Jeopardy! issued a statement via Twitter. “Alex thanks all of you from the bottom of his heart for all of the messages of support he’s received,” the statement read. “Due to the sheer volume, he will no longer be responding to letters or requests for autographs. Please know that he appreciates each and every sentiment conveyed!”