Bobby Burack
Videos by OutKick
Monday, Rush Limbaugh delivered an emotional update on his condition. Limbaugh, who was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer in January, revealed that scans last week showed “progression of cancer”:
“The scans did show some progression of cancer,” Limbaugh began. “Prior to that, the scans had shown that we had rendered the cancer dormant. That’s my phrase for it. We had stopped the growth. It had been reduced, and it had become manageable. But it’s always the reality, and the knowledge, that that can change and it can come back, because it is cancer. It outsmarts pretty much everything you throw at it. And this, of course, this is stage 4 lung cancer.”
“It’s tough to realize that the days where I do not think I’m under a death sentence are over,” he concludes.
Limbaugh remained upbeat, adding his doctors will tweak his treatment plan:
“Stage 4 is, as they say, terminal. We have to tweak the treatment plan, which we did, and the chemotherapy drugs in hopes of keeping additional progression at bay for as long as possible. So the idea now is to keep it where it is, or to maybe have it reduce again. We’ve shown that that is possible. If it happened once, it can happen again. So that is the objective of the current treatment plan.”
Limbaugh then discussed the early stages of his diagnosis:
“After receiving the diagnosis, I never thought I would see October 1st. The doctor said if you don’t do anything, we’re looking at a couple of months … There is no way back in January and February that I had anything but hope that I would still be alive on this day, October 19th, and that I would be fully productive working.”
Perhaps the most heartbreaking segment the radio legend has ever produced came with wise words for his listeners:
“The only thing that any of us are certain of is right now, today,” he explained. “I try to make it the best day I can, no matter what. I don’t look too far ahead. I certainly don’t look too far back.
“I wake up every day, thank God that I did. I go to bed every night praying to God that I’m gonna wake up,” he said. “It’s a blessing when you wake up. It’s a stop-everything-and-thank-God moment. It’s a blessing to maintain as much normalcy as you can.”
Limbaugh periodically updates the audience on his condition with baseball analogies. Before the progression, he was trying to steal third base but notes he is now back to second.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to Rush Limbaugh and his family.
I’ve listened to Rush since my dad introduced me to him in the late 80s/early 90s. I listened to Rush while I was away at college, possibly saving me from indoctrination. I don’t listen everyday, but it’s always reassuring to hear his voice. I lost my dad in 2018 and being able to listen to Rush helped remind me of the good old days listening with my dad, making it feel like my dad is still around. When Rush signs off for the last time, I will feel his loss and the loss of my dad all over again.
Hey Jerry…I’m gonna feel the same way you will when Rush crosses over into the spiritual realm.
I remember when he first came to NYC and broadcast at WABC. He used to live in a hotel at first, and he said he knew nobody and had no idea where to go, so he ate dinner every night at Patsy’s on West 56th Street after finishing his show. It was so funny listening him talk about trying to find his way. He sure did find his way…bigger than life in many ways.
Praying
Yep, Gary…that’s all we can do.
Was offline for a couple hours, and working on dinner now (some Dylan and Ricki Lee Jones to help me get through it lol) but I had to come back to mention…usually the next day’s show Rush would talk about how his evening was, and I always laughed that he said he would have the chicken parm EVERY NIGHT at Patsy’s because he loved it so much. Head waiter and he would talk stuff and he’d give Rush pointers on the big city…cool stuff…country boy in the big city lol.
It still amazes me that we can send a man to the moon 50 years ago, and that we can now take a photo and send it to the other side of the world in seconds, but medical science can’t eliminate a cancer inside someone’s body just inches away.
Started listening as an 18 year old in 1991. I come from a family of conservative Southern Democrats and changed to Republican in 1992. Rushs’ words and insight have been a calming constant for many years. I identify with Rush in many ways and his pursuit for truth has inspired me to seek answers on many subjects and on my own terms. I wish Rush and his family the very best and that the medical professionals aiding him will be able to provide him the best life possible going forward.
Bobby, thanks for writing this. Outkick is one of the few media outlets that will give the proper respect to Rush for his amazing accomplishments as a leading light in American intellectual thought. I was listening to Rush the other day, as I do most days, and heard him falter, ever so slightly, on the air. I ignored it, like most ignore it when they do something less well than they used to, due to the inevitable onset of the aging process, because they want to believe that they will be like they were when they were 17 forever. Or when you talk to one of your parents and you finally realize, “wow they got so old!” Because his listeners know him so well, we know innately how much effort Rush is putting in to what he used to do, better than anyone else, effortlessly. We can sense what we are all facing, the inevitable. But we do not want to admit it. Rush is family to us and many of us are afraid to contemplate life after Rush and what it means for the country. Thankfully, his spirit will live on in a few well-lit places like Outkick.
I would like to give Rush some words of encouragement. I am 55 years old and I have had to battle the disease(COVID has nothing on me!), for the last 5 years, 2 months, and 10 days. I know what it’s like to have dormant scans, and then boom, you get hit with bad news. This happened to me in March of this year, after nearly 2 years of holding it off. I had to have 30% of my liver removed. This was my 5th surgery. In November of 2017, I was re-diagnoses with Metastatic Colorectal Cancer. It had spread to my lungs and liver. My point is, stay close to God, continue to enjoy y your life, and look for alternative solutions to help. My thoughts and prayers are coming your way Rush!
Keep banging away Patrick. Very inspiring. Wish u the best my man. Hope Rush can get through this. Crazier things have happened. Always seems to happen to the really good ones.