Teen 'Jeopardy!' champ donates $10,000 to cancer research in honor of Alex Trebek

Anika Reed | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption ‘Jeopardy!’ host Alex Trebek plans to beat stage 4 pancreatic cancer In a video message, "Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek told fans he will continue to fight and "beat the low survival rate statistics."

A donation for $10,000, please: 2019 "Jeopardy!" Teen Tournament champion Avi Gupta honored host Alex Trebek in a major way.

The teen, who won $100,000 during his time in the tournament this summer, is donating $10,000 to cancer research just in time for Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month.

Trebek, who Gupta says is "someone I've looked up to my whole life," has Stage 4 pancreatic cancer, a diagnosis he went public with in March.

The OHSU Knight Cancer Institute tweeted a video Friday of the college freshman talking about his donation.

"I was inspired to give by Alex Trebek," Gupta says in the clip. "It was a dream come true earlier this year to finally join him on the 'Jeopardy!' stage … and I'm honored to be able to make this donation to the Knight Cancer Institute to support him and the millions of other people suffering from pancreatic cancer across the world."

Gupta tweeted, "Working with Alex on @Jeopardy was an honor, and I hope the #Jeopardy community will join me in honoring him."

This #PancreaticCancerAwarenessMonth, join us in the fight to #EndCancer. Working with Alex on @Jeopardy was an honor, and I hope the #Jeopardy community will join me in honoring him. #InspiredBy https://t.co/ZOloI3vzwO — Avi Gupta (@avigupta33) November 2, 2019

USA TODAY was unable to reach "Jeopardy!" or Trebek's rep for comment.

The longtime host, 79, opened Tuesday's Tournament of Champions episode with a eulogy for Larry Martin, the winner of the 2018 Teachers Tournament.

"I’m sure many of you noticed on yesterday’s program, and on today, with our three contestants all wearing purple ribbons. This is one of the symbols in the fight against pancreatic cancer," Trebek said Tuesday. "They are wearing them as a tribute to Larry Martin."

Last month, Trebek released a PSA about the symptoms of the disease before World Pancreatic Cancer Day in November.

Trebek announced in September that after a short period of optimism when he stopped chemotherapy, his doctors ordered him back on the treatment.

"I was doing so well, and my numbers went down to the equivalent of a normal human being who doesn't have pancreatic cancer, so we were all very optimistic," he said. "And they said, 'Good, we're going to stop chemo, we'll start you on immunotherapy.' I lost about 12 pounds in a week, and my numbers went sky high. Much higher than they were when I was first diagnosed."

'Jeopardy!'s Alex Trebek honors late contestant, a fellow pancreatic cancer patient

Contributing: Sara Moniuszko, Cydney Henderson