News Anchor Diagnosed with Cancer During Live Segment

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Breaking news doesn’t get much more personal than this.

A Fox News affiliate anchor in Philadelphia received the news of a lifetime recently, when an on-air segment discussing cancer involved a live demonstration.

WTXF-TV’s Mike Jerrick, co-host of “Good Day Philadelphia,” was discussing skincare with Dr. Joanna Walker when she happened to notice an oddity on the anchor’s skin.

You can watch the stunning moment below:

Watch the latest video at foxnews.com

Walker, who works in the Tara Miller Melanoma Center at the University of Pennsylvania, and Jerrick were discussing the importance of checking for skin cancer.

The doctor demonstrated as much on Walker, when she noticed the spot and quickly identified it as basal cell carcinoma, a common type of skin cancer.

Jerrick, clearly caught off guard, asked what was next, with Walker explaining that actual surgery would likely be needed to remove it (as opposed to burning it off).

The good news for Jerrick, according to Walker, is that this sort of skin cancer is slow-growing and very treatable, if caught early enough.

Have you been to a dermatologist in the last year?

Yes: 54% (202 Votes)

No: 46% (173 Votes)

And thanks to this happenstance segment, Jerrick certainly appears to have caught it early.

“But you do need to remove it, so it doesn’t keep growing and take over normal skin,” Walker told Jerrick.

“It’s important to get those checked,” Walker stressed.

Fox News spoke to Jerrick, who admitted that part of the show was always going to involve a skin check-up on him but that he certainly wasn’t expecting the results of that check-up.

“I did say that we should have her bring her [micro]scope because I wanted to check out a couple of things on my arms, so that part was planned, but I never really thought it was going to be skin cancer,” Jerrick told the network.

He added: “When she blurted it out, I didn’t get alarmed or anything. It was just like, ‘Oh dang, I should have done this a long time ago.’”

Jerrick did, however, get a little alarmed, when Walker broached the subject of surgery.

“I was more shocked that she said she was going to cut it out instead of burn it off — that’s where I got surprised,” he admitted.

While the prognosis largely looks positive for Jerrick, even if it weren’t, this isn’t the first time he’s grappled with cancer recently.

As his own network covered in July 2024, Jerrick recently missed a spate of WTXF episodes due to his battle with prostate cancer.



Jerrick will surely have no shortage of support in this battle with cancer, as well.

While not a national name, Jerrick has earned a loyal following for his humorous antics on “Good Day Philadelphia”:

Jerrick is scheduled to have the cancerous spot removed on Friday.

Sr. Editor / Sr. Writer

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Bryan Chai has written news and sports for The Western Journal for more than five years and has produced more than 1,300 stories. He specializes in the NBA and NFL as well as politics.

Bryan Chai has written news and sports for The Western Journal for more than five years and has produced more than 1,300 stories. He specializes in the NBA and NFL as well as politics. He graduated with a BA in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona. He is an avid fan of sports, video games, politics and debate.

Birthplace

Hawaii

Education

Class of 2010 University of Arizona. BEAR DOWN.

Location

Phoenix, Arizona

Languages Spoken

English, Korean

Topics of Expertise

Sports, Entertainment, Science/Tech

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