Alex Trebek Celebrates 79th Birthday With Family And Good News Amidst Cancer Battle

Legendary “Jeopardy!” host Alex Trebek celebrated his 79th birthday on Monday as he continues to fight for his life against pancreatic cancer.

Fox News reported that in photos posted to Instagram on Monday by the official “Jeopardy!” account, Trebek seemed to be in good spirits as he celebrated his birthday with family and friends in a ballroom decorated with balloons and streamers. Among those celebrating with Trebek were his wife Jean Currivan, 54, and their two children, Matthew, 29, and Emily, 26.

“Today is Alex’s birthday! ? Send him your wishes in the comments below,” the photos were captioned.

This comes two months after Trebek shared the good news that his tumors are responding so well to chemotherapy that his doctors have been left stunned.

“It’s kind of mind-boggling,” Trebek said when revealing the good news to fans. “The doctors said they hadn’t seen this kind of positive result in their memory… some of the tumors have already shrunk by more than 50 percent.”

He added that he cried “happy tears” when he got the news, and that he has always felt like he had one major advantage over other people battling the disease.

“I’ve got a couple million people out there who have expressed their good thoughts, their positive energy directed toward me and their prayers,” Trebek said. “I told the doctors, this has to be more than just the chemo, and they agreed it could very well be an important part of this. I’ve got a lot of love out there headed in my direction and a lot of prayers, and I will never ever minimize the value of that.”

Fans Wish Trebek Happy Birthday

Fans have been sending Trebek their birthday wishes on social media this week.

“Alex!! You are an institution! I’ve been watching you host Jeopardy since I was a toddler. Many happy returns, thank you for enriching all of our lives,” one social media user commented, with another adding, “I wish nothing but health and happiness for you Mr Trebek! Thank you for all of the love you give us through your fascinating show. Lots of love and happy birthday!”

“Happy Birthday to you, Alex!” a third user wrote. “Praying for your continued healing in the coming year.”

Please keep Alex Trebek in your thoughts and prayers as he continues to fight for his life. Happy birthday, Mr. Trebek, and have many more!