Some college basketball updates are bigger than rankings, transfers or projected starting lineups.
Dick Vitale provided one of those Wednesday.
The legendary ESPN broadcaster shared an encouraging update from his latest battle with cancer, revealing that his recent bloodwork produced promising results.
“Just received good news from my oncologist that my bloodwork results were very good,” Vitale wrote on social media. “I keep praying that the immunotherapy treatments are very effective in wiping out the cancer.”
Just received good news from my oncologist that my bloodwork results were very good. I keep 🙏🙏🙏 that the Immuno Therapy treatments are very effective in wiping out the cancer.
— Dick Vitale (@DickieV) August 5, 2026
According to an Associated Press report published by ESPN, the 87-year-old Vitale said the immunotherapy treatments have been “very effective” as he continues fighting cancer for the fifth time.
For a man who has spent decades shouting about diaper dandies, prime-time players and the beauty of college basketball, this was the kind of announcement that deserved some extra volume.
Dick Vitale continues to fight
Vitale announced in April that a biopsy had revealed melanoma in his lungs and liver cavity. It represented another frightening chapter in a health journey that has already included melanoma, lymphoma, vocal cord cancer and lymph node cancer.
He also underwent surgery in 2024 as part of his treatment for lymph node cancer.
Yet anyone familiar with Vitale knows he was never going to approach this fight quietly or without optimism. His enthusiasm has always extended far beyond basketball, especially when discussing cancer research and the people affected by the disease.
Vitale received the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance in 2022. The honor is named after his close friend Jim Valvano, the former NC State coach who died from cancer in 1993.
Vitale has spent years raising money for the V Foundation for Cancer Research, helping turn his enormous platform and unmistakable personality into something much more meaningful than basketball commentary.
Now the college basketball community is again rallying around him.
College basketball is better with Dickie V around
Vitale made several appearances on ESPN during the 2025-26 season and also contributed to TNT’s NCAA Tournament coverage. He has not announced his plans for the upcoming campaign, and his health understandably remains the priority.
Still, it is impossible to imagine the sport without him.
Vitale has been part of ESPN’s college basketball coverage since the network’s earliest days. Generations of fans have grown up hearing his voice during the biggest games of the season. Even those who occasionally find the volume turned a little too high understand the passion behind it.
There has never been anything manufactured about Vitale’s love for college basketball. He genuinely celebrates the players, coaches, students and traditions that make the sport special.
That same sincerity has made his health battles deeply personal for so many fans who have never met him.
There is still a long road ahead, and one positive blood test does not mean the fight is over. But after five cancer diagnoses and countless treatments, Vitale received news worth celebrating.
For once, everyone in college basketball can agree on the call.
That is awesome, baby.
Add us as a preferred source on Google