Ken Jennings Left Speechless By ‘Jeopardy!’ Contestant’s Shocking Admission – ‘Oh Wow’

A Jeopardy! contestant left host Ken Jennings speechless on Tuesday night after making a devastating admission about his own health.

Contestant Leaves Jennings Speechless

Jeopardy! contestant Chris Burge is a high school teacher from Farmers Branch, Texas. During the segment in which Jennings talks to the contestants to learn more about them, Burge shocked everyone by revealing that he is battling stage 4 cancer.

“Chris, understand you’re facing a health challenge right now that you wanted to talk about,” said Jennings, 50.

“Yeah, I’ve been fighting Stage IV colon cancer since May,” Burge replied.

Jennings was visibly stunned by this, replying only with, “Oh wow.”

Burge then used his platform for a great reason – to urge other young people to get checked for cancer.

“Young adult diagnoses have increased a lot in recent years,” he explained. “Definitely encourage people not to ignore any kind of symptoms. Definitely push to get tested, especially if you have any family history of it.”

“That’s a great word to get out there,” Jennings said in response. “Thank you so much, Chris.”

Related: Ken Jennings Blasted By ‘Jeopardy!’ Fans After Accepting Incorrect Answer

Social Media Responds

Social media users were quick to praise Burge and offer him support.

“Great game by all three players where any of the three Daily Doubles going the other way would’ve changed who won,” one social media user wrote. “All the best to Chris in his hopeful recovery.”

“Here’s wishing Chris Burge a full and complete recovery. You performed well against two strong competitors, Chris!” another user commented. A third person wrote, “Sending you all the prayers and love Chris! You’ve got this!!!!” 

Sadly, Burge ended up in third place with $1,600 after the Jeopardy and Double Jeopardy rounds. He found himself behind Mikey McCullough, a librarian from Baltimore, Maryland with $20,200, and Paul Clauson, a tax analyst from Madison Heights, Michigan, with $11,000.

The Final Jeopardy clue was, “At 800 West Main & 700 Central in this city are a company & a venue both involved in Triple Crowns.”

The answer was “Louisville,” and Burge was the only contestant to get it correct. However, McCullough still won the game with $18,200, as she only dropped $2,000.

Check out the Final Jeopardy segment in the video below.

Related: ‘Jeopardy!’ Host Ken Jennings Forced To Apologize To Female Contestant For ‘Problematic’ Clue

The Rise Of Colon Cancer

This comes as doctors are sounding the alarm about a rise in colon cancer among millennials and Gen Z. The National Library of Medicine published a disturbing study in 2022 revealing that colon cancer cases increased from 8.6 cases per 100,000 people in 1992 to 12.9 cases per 100,000 in 2018. During this time, the biggest rise was in people aged 40-49. 

Tim Spector, a British epidemiologist and medical doctor, told Newsweek that the diets of young people could be playing a large role in the rise of colon cancer.

“It seems that younger generations want to eat well,” he explained. “However, because ‘wellness’ has become fashionable, there’s a great deal of misinformation on social media. This can make it difficult for people of any age to know how to eat healthily.”

Dr. Anne K. Mongiu, a colon and rectal surgeon in Connecticut, believes that the typical American diet doesn’t include enough fruits and vegetables. According to her, this is also a contributor in the rise of colon cancer.

“We know that high fiber diets can help reduce risk for colorectal cancer but unfortunately the American diet is typically low in fiber,” Dr. Mongiu said. “It includes multiple types of foods that we know can increase cancer risk such as red meat and processed foods.”

“This kind of diet tends to promote obesity and issues with metabolism,” she added. “The high-fat content of this diet can activate certain pathways in the body that stimulate basic cell types (stem cells) that line the large intestine and trigger them to turn cancerous.”

We applaud Burge for using his platform to urge others to get checked for cancer. Please join us in saying a prayer for him as he continues his cancer battle!