‘Jeopardy!’ Host Alex Trebek Spotted on Rare Outing Amid Battle With Cancer

Amid his treatment for stage IV pancreatic cancer, Alex Trebek was spotted doing some chores around his Los Angeles home. The longtime Jeopardy! host was spotted taking his trash to the curb in-between the show’s taping schedule. As Closer Weekly noted, he was sporting a casual jean and sweatshirt combo.

Last month, Trebek told PEOPLE that while he doesn’t have any plans to retire just yet, he’s not really giving it oo much though, either.

“Keep in mind I’m 79,” Trebek said, after joking that he’d simply “drink” after retiring. “I don’t foresee that 30-second moment coming up in the near future,” Trebek said, referring his request for the producers to give him a half-minute to say his formal farewell.

“When you’ve been hosting, there are some of you who have been doing your jobs for many years,” he continued. “Some of you two or three decades. When you’ve been in the same job for that long period of time, it moves you to think at some point about retiring. Thinking about retiring and retiring are two different things. As long as I feel my skills haven’t diminished too much and as long as I’m enjoying spending time with bright people and working with people like Harry [Friedman] and our creative writing team, then I’m going to do it.”

Trebek was diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer in March of last year. While he’s admitted there have been some ups and downs balancing his treatment with his hosting duties, he’s determined to stay behind the podium until he feels like retiring.

The 79-year-old also hasn’t given much thought to who would replace him, saying “it’s not a decision that would be up to me and I would not make myself available to presenting an opinion,” adding he “would leave it up to the people in charge.” Although he did throw Betty White’s name into the ring.

Last month, fans of the show tuned in for the four-night primetime event Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time, which pitted the show’s biggest winners against each other. Ken Jennings ended up taking the title, with James Holzhauer coming in second while Brad Rutter came in a distant third.

The show’s now prepping its next big showdown, the 2020 College Championship. The tournament is slated to air in April, though they did release the “Fab 15” roster of competitors in early February.