After announcing that his return to announcing would be postponed, Dick Vitale went into more detail about what happened. Photo Credit: Jeff Faughender/Courier Journal/USA TODAY NETWORK Photo Credit: Jeff Faughender/Courier Journal/USA TODAY NETWORK
College BasketballESPNBy Reice Shipley on

Dick Vitale’s return to college basketball this past season was met with overwhelming excitement from just about everyone around the sport. And fortunately, after Vitale’s health update shared on social media on Tuesday, it sounds as if Vitale will be able to continue broadcasting should he want to next season.

Vitale had a long road to return back to the ESPN broadcast booth this past season, missing the 2022-23 season and the 2023-24 season with multiple bouts with cancer, first with vocal cord cancer that required radiation and later with cancer in his lymph nodes that were removed with surgery. 

Back in January, Vitale announced that he was cancer-free, which allowed his return that would come in a February 8 game between Duke and Clemson.

Vitale has been quite vigilant in sharing updates on his health on social media over the past few years. And on Tuesday, a great update came in from him, announcing that both his scans and his bloodwork remain cancer-free.

“Hi everyone, Dick Vitale,” said Vitale in a video shared on X. “Well, I just got my report from Doctor Rick Brown. Yes, the report came in about my scan I took yesterday and my bloodwork. I am ecstatic, I am on cloud nine! He said the bloodwork was perfect. And he also said the four words you love to hear. You are cancer-free, baby! Wow, I can’t believe it. I really am so excited, it brought me to tears when he delivered it. Because as cancer patients, you know that call is nerve-wracking. It’s life-changing. If he says your cancer is back, you’ve got radiation and chemo. But I am on cloud nine! Celebration time tonight! Yes sir, I am going to have a great Italian dinner. I feel like I won the National Championship!”

Obviously, this news couldn’t have been any better. And as you may expect, many colleagues and peers in sports media took the time to congratulate Vitale on his latest clean bill of health.

“Awesome news,” wrote Kevin Negandhi.

“Amazing news for an amazing human being!” wrote CBS Sports college basketball insider Jon Rothstein.

“Dickie V. is cancer free,” wrote Jamie Shaw of On3 Sports.

“Congrats!!! That’s fantastic news,” wrote Tom Leach, the radio play-by-play voice of the Kentucky Wildcats.

About Reice Shipley

Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.

View all posts by Reice Shipley