A “Jeopardy!” episode set to air next week promises to be an emotional one, as the contestant featured in the episode has passed away from cancer one week before it was scheduled to air.
As the New York Post reports, Cindy Stowell passed away on Monday at age 41, while the episode in which she appears is slated to air on Dec. 13. This marks the first time in the iconic game show’s history that a contestant has appeared posthumously.
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“When Cindy Stowell taped her appearance on ‘Jeopardy!,’ she had Stage IV cancer. Competing on ‘Jeopardy!’ was a lifelong dream for Cindy, and we’re glad she was able to do so,” said host Alex Trebek in a statement. “Sadly, Cindy died on Dec. 5. All of us at ‘Jeopardy!’ offer our condolences and best wishes to her family and friends.”
Stowell’s death was announced on social media by her longtime boyfriend Jason Hess, who shared news of her passing.
Hess also shared that Stowell “was fighting a high-grade fever (which turned out to be a blood infection) and was on painkillers while taping.”
Stowell competed on the show with the intention of donating her winnings to fund cancer research. “Cindy came on ‘Jeopardy!’ to play the game she loved and in doing so, she was able to make a contribution to cancer research in the hopes that no one else would have to go through what she did,” said her mother Carole Stowell, brother Greg Stowell and Hess in a joint statement.
During the taping, Stowell’s condition was a closely guarded secret, with only Trebek and “a select group of staffers” informed that she was suffering from terminal cancer (her doctor, reports the Post, had told her she had about six months to live).
The “Jeopardy!” episode featuring Stowell airs Tuesday, Dec. 13.