Alex Trebek has returned to hosting Jeopardy after five months. Trebek had taken a hiatus from hosting the popular game show after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. After Trebek’s announcement that he would be taking a reprieve from hosting the show after finding he had stage 4 cancer, it was uncertain whether the long-running game show host would return.
However, according to The Hollywood Reporter, it has been confirmed that Trebek is now filming the 36th season of the game show. In a video message, Trebek let fans know that he not only has finished chemo, but also is back in the game.
“I’m on the mend, and that’s all I can hope for right now,” he tells concerned viewers, adding that “We’ve got some exciting things coming up, and I can’t wait to share them with all of you,” Trebek concludes. “Let me tell you, it’s going to be a good year.”
Always in good spirits, Trebek had announced back in March that although he had been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer, which is largely incurable and has meager 9% five-year survival rate, he would continue to work. He jokingly stated that he had to stay around at least another three years in order to fulfill his contract as host of Jeopardy.
“I’m going to fight this, and I’m going to keep working,” he told fans on the show’s YouTube channel. “And with the love and support of my family and friends and with the help of your prayers also, I plan to beat the low survival rate statistics for this disease.”
Trebek, aged 79, continued to host the upcoming season while undergoing chemotherapy. In report back in May, Trebek announced that “tumors have already shrunk by more than 50 percent.”
CNN was first to report Trebek’s return to hosting Jeopardy.
After being in production for over a month, season 36 is set to premiere September 9.