Daytime Emmys 2019: ‘Jeopardy’ Host Alex Trebek Gets Standing Ovation

Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek earned a standing ovation from the audience at the 2019 Daytime Emmy Awards when he took to the stage to present an award.

Trebek presented the awards for Best Younger Actress and Actor awards to General Hospital‘s Hayley Erin and Days of Our Lives‘ Kyler Pettis. Before he could say a word though, the television legend was met with a standing ovation, just days after he provided a new update on his battle with pancreatic cancer.

Fans watching the livestreams of the Daytime Emmys were excited to see the much-deserved applause for the 78-year-old.

In March, Trebek announced he is battling Stage 4 prostate cancer. In spite of the diagnosis, he continues to host Jeopardy!.

Last week, Trebek appeared on Good Morning America, where he told Robin Roberts that his oncologist said he is “doing well.”

“I’ve had kidney stones, I’ve had ruptured discs, so I’m used to dealing with pain. But what I”m not used to dealing with is the surges that come on suddenly of deep, deep sadness, and it brings tears to my eyes,” Trebek said.

He continued, “I’ve discovered in this whole episode, ladies and gentlemen, that I’m a bit of a wuss. But I’m fighting through it. My platelets, my blood counts are steady, my weight is steady… the cancer indicators are coming down. So I’ve got another chemo next week and then we’ll do a review to find out where things stand.”

Trebek said he wanted fans to understand that chemotherapy impacts people in different ways. For him, it has made him “feel so weak all the time, and that’s not a good place to be.”

“You have to deal with it,” he continued. “What am I gonna do? It is something I am afflicted with. We are dealing with it chemically and spiritually, and those are positives. And hopefully everything is going to turn out well and I’ll be back on the air with original programming come this September.”

While Jeopardy! is no longer in production for the season, new episodes are still airing. The show is currently being dominated by James Holzhauer, who has won more than a million dollars.