Wheel of Fortune star Vanna White shared a throwback photo of her and Jeopardy host Alex Trebek to honor his eightieth birthday.
The Instagram Post
“Lots of memories with this longtime pal. Happy birthday Alex!,” she wrote. The photo Trebek with a mustache standing beside White.
See the photo, below.
Their Friendship and Support
White has been at Trebek’s side during his battle with Stage IV pancreatic cancer.
“He’s doing good. He really is,” she told Us Weekly in December. “He looks good. I talked to him recently and he’s got a very positive attitude.”
“I love that he’s honest and open with his fans, because he’s been doing the show for a very long time also and feels very connected to all of his fans and viewers,” she added. “He is definitely keeping everybody updated on how he’s doing, and I am so proud of him. He’s still working, he’s obviously doing chemotherapy but working through it, and has that strong will to, as we say, the show must go on.”
White revealed that their friendship has spanned over thirty years. The pair met while both hosting their game shows.
“Oh, I’ve been supporting him 100 percent,” White told media outlets. “We’ve known each other for over 30 years, of course. And even though he’s on a different show, we’re still the same family so I’m there and supporting him and praying for him.”
Alex Trebek and Cancer
Trebek was diagnosed with Stage IV pancreatic cancer in March of 2019. “The one-year survival rate for stage 4 pancreatic cancer patients is 18 percent. I’m very happy to report, I have just reached that marker,” he shared in a video posted in March of 2020.
Furthermore, his positive outlook on life he credits to his wife, Jean, and his medical team. “My oncologist tried to cheer me up the other day, he said, Alex, even though the two-year survival rate is only seven 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,” he added. “You know something, if I… no, if we—because so many of us are involved in this same situation—if we take it just one day at a time with a positive attitude, anything is possible.”
