Bryant Gumbel Reveals He's Battling Lung Cancer

Sportscaster tells Kelly Ripa he had surgery last month

Sportscaster Bryant Gumbel is being treated for lung cancer, he revealed Tuesday.

The former "Today" show anchor disclosed the news on "Live! With Regis & Kelly" Tuesday morning, saying he had surgery last month to remove a malignant tumor from his chest.

Gumbel, 61, was subbing for Regis Philbin when co-host Kelly Ripa asked him to dance. He begged off with the dramatic excuse, saying part of his lung was removed last month, and he will be seeing his surgeon next week.

"They opened up my chest, they took a malignant tumor and they took part of my lung and some other goodies," Gumbel said. "The pathology on most of the stuff came back benign, but enough aggressive cells escaped the tumor that it warranted some treatment." He says "it's done now."

Gumbel said he had kept the procedure mostly secret until Tuesday.

"We had told a few people, we told my family, obviously. I even kept it from my staff at Real Sports. So I'm okay for the time being," he said. "I'm hoping they greenlight me to play golf again."

 

Contact Us