Alex Trebek Candidly Reveals His Struggles With ‘Depression’ After Surviving 1st Year With Cancer   

Alex Trebek reached a major milestone in his battle with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer, he says in a new video update about his health on March 4. The ‘Jeopardy’ host revealed what’s next after joining the 1-year survival rate, which is 18 percent.

Alex Trebek is making great strides in his fight against stage 4 pancreatic cancer. The Jeopardy! host, 79, released a video update about the current state of his health on social media on March 4, and revealed that he will continue to battle his cancer one day at a time. The update comes one year after his diagnosis — a milestone just 18 percent of those with his stage and type of cancer, survive.

“The one-year survival rate for Stage 4 pancreatic cancer patients is 18%,” Alex began a video update, shared Wednesday on the official Jeopardy! social media accounts. “I’m very happy to report I have just reached that marker,” he revealed, before he detailed his health journey since his diagnosis.

“I’d be lying if I said the journey had been an easy one,” he admitted. “There were some good days, but a lot of not-so-good days. I joked with friends that the cancer won’t kill me, the chemo treatments will. There were moments of great pain, days when certain bodily functions no longer functioned and sudden, massive attacks of great depression that made me wonder if it really was worth fighting on.”

A one-year update from Alex: pic.twitter.com/W9101suZeZ

— Jeopardy! (@Jeopardy) March 4, 2020

However, Alex said he “brushed aside” any negative thoughts. Why? — “That would have been a massive betrayal – a betrayal of my wife and soulmate, Jean, who has given her all to help me survive,” he said, explaining, “It would have been a betrayal of other cancer patients who have looked to me as an inspiration and a cheerleader of sorts of the value of living and hope. And it would certainly have been a betrayal of my faith in God and the millions of prayers that have been said on my behalf.”

Alex went on to recall a recent encounter with his oncologist.

My oncologist tried to cheer me up the other day, he said, ‘Alex, even though the 2-year survival rate is only 7 percent,’ he was certain that one year from now, the two of us would be sitting in his office celebrating my second anniversary of survival.”

Alex concluded his 1 minute and 49-second video with a powerful message to those fighting the same fight as him.

“You know something, if I – no – if we, because so many of us are involved in this same situation,” he said, noting, “If we take it just one day at a time with a positive attitude, anything is possible. He signed off with, “I’ll keep you posed.”

The television icon publicly announced on March 6, 2019 that he had been diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer. While he’s taken some time away from work, Alex has kept fans updated about his health throughout his treatment.