Alex Trebek, host of Jeopardy, has been diagnosed with Stage IV pancreatic cancer. What many people may not realize is that this is the same illness that claimed the life of his Jeopardy predecessor, Art Fleming.

Fleming died of pancreatic cancer on April 25, 1995, just two weeks after he was diagnosed.

“We’re all stunned. He was a great fellow. Art was the first 11 years of the success of ‘Jeopardy,'” Merv Griffin, creator of Jeopardy, said at the time.

Fleming served as the original Jeopardy host from 1964 to 1974, and then for two more years when it was revamped in 1978 as The All-New Jeopardy. When the show returned again in 1984, Trebek was given the host title.

Here’s what you need to know:

Trebek Announced His Diagnosis on Wednesday

A Message From Alex Trebek | JEOPARDY!"Hi everyone, I have some news to share with all of you and it’s in keeping with my longtime policy of being open and transparent with our Jeopardy! fan base. I also wanted to prevent you from reading or hearing some overblown or inaccurate reports regarding my health. So therefore, I wanted to be the… 2019-03-06T22:03:32.000Z

Trebek, 78, recently received the devastating diagnosis and shared the news with the watching world by way of a video that was posted online on Wednesday, March 6.

“Just like 50,000 other people in the United States each year, this week I was diagnosed with Stage IV pancreatic cancer. Now, normally the prognosis for this is not very encouraging. But I’m going to fight this. And I’m going to keep working. And with the love and support of my family and friends and with the help of your prayers, also, I plan to beat the low-survival rate statistics of this disease,” Trebek said, later joking about having to live because he has three more years on his Jeopardy contract.

You can watch his full announcement in the video above.

The Prognosis for Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer Is Not Good

Art Fleming be like ? pic.twitter.com/C619Pxn78c — Percy Gryce (@percy_gryce) March 6, 2019

Pancreatic cancer is one of the hardest cancers to detect and thus official diagnosis often comes when the cancer has already progressed.

Stage IV pancreatic cancer means that the cancer has spread to other organs — this is also referred to as metastasizing. At this stage, there is no cure. Patients may opt to do treatment, such as chemotherapy, which can often help slow the cancer’s growth. Some patients will also be candidates for radiation therapy and, in some cases, surgery may be done to help bypass tumors.

As for the prognosis, not many patients make it to the 5-year mark. In fact, the median survival rate is less than one year.

“Pancreatic cancer is the fourth most common cause of cancer death. The median survival rate for stage 4 pancreatic cancer is between two and six months. Though the disease cannot be cured at this stage, treatment may improve your quality of life,” according to Healthline.

Fleming Died 2 Weeks After Diagnosis

Big Art Fleming fan here! pic.twitter.com/Y1dfZuljgD — Randy Hedrick (@HeddRoxx) May 17, 2018

As mentioned earlier in this post, Fleming died just two weeks after he was diagnosed. He died at his home in Crystal River, Florida, in 1995.

Further details about Fleming’s diagnosis or what stage cancer he had are unknown. It is presumed, however, that he also had Stage IV.

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