Dr. Oz Gives Health Update on Alex Trebek, 'He's An Incredible Fighter'

Dr. Mehmet Oz gave the public an update about the condition of "Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek while appearing on "Fox & Friends" Thursday. Trebek has been battling pancreatic cancer and recently announced that he has to undergo another bout of chemotherapy.

"The Dr. Oz Show" host said he visited with Trebek a few weeks ago and said he is keeping his head up throughout his health struggle.

Oz noted that Trebek has been suffering with mouth ulcers but said those are just minor issues.

"He's an incredible fighter and a great American, who's Canadian. ... He's a strong man and I think he's doing much better than I would do," Dr. Oz said.

Mega

Oz was praising Trebek for raising awareness about the life-threatening disease and encouraged others to learn the "signs and symptoms."

“The bigger issue here is that folks, when they do get diagnosed, often don’t get aggressively treated," he said and that's why he was so happy that Alex did a PSA about recognizing the symptoms.

"The only chance physicians can get ahead on this is by you telling us that you got these signs," Oz continued, "I'm hopeful we will find cures for some forms of pancreatic cancer."

Gettyimages | Gregg DeGuire

Last month, Trebek spoke openly about the side effects he is suffering in an interview with CTV News' Lisa LaFlamme where he revealed that his hosting abilities have been affected.

“I’m sure there are observant members of the television audience that notice also, but they’re forgiving," Trebek said. “But there will come a point when they (producers) will no longer be able to say, ‘It’s ok.' I will keep doing it as long as my skills do not diminish, and they have started to diminish.”

Gettyimages | Santiago Felipe

On October 30, the tv host put out a PSA that announced his partnership with the World Pancreatic Cancer Coalition (WPCC).

"Pancreatic cancer is the only major cancer with a five-year survival rate in the single digits," Trebek said at the start of his PSA. "Now in order to help patients fight and survive this disease more attention and awareness are needed."

Trebek continued his statement by saying that he wished he took action earlier. "I wish I had known sooner that the persistent stomach pain I experienced prior to my diagnosis was a symptom of pancreatic cancer."

Instagram

The 'Jeopardy!' host made a rare appearance on former contestant Austin Rogers' podcast last month. The long-time game show host spoke about how he has been enjoying his time on the podcast, "A Lot to Learn with Austin Rogers."

The 79-year-old revealed that he loves home improvement and recently finished his wife Jean's bathroom.

"I love fixing things," Trebek said, "It all seemed to have worked out pretty well."

Fans were impressed by what Alex was able to accomplish and sent love to the star via social media.

"She's happy with it, I'm happy with it," Trebek said referring to Jean's opinion on the washroom, "her next project is her office and her closet."

Alex said he thought it was strange that his wife wants wallpaper in the closet but she's the boss.