Controversial Talk Show Host Suffers a Life-Threatening Infection

 

(NewsSpace.com) – On Monday, November 27, controversial “Late Show” host Stephen Colbert (59) announced he was forgoing a week’s worth of shows due to a medical emergency.

The TV personality was due to have some big names on the “Late Show” over the next few days, such as singer Barbra Streisand, actors Kelsey Grammer and Patrick Stewart, director Baz Luhrmann, and actress Jennifer Garner. There’s no word on whether or not his guests will be rescheduled.

Colbert has been the host of the “Late Show” since 2015, following David Letterman’s retirement. Before that, he led his own show, “The Colbert Report,” on Comedy Central for nearly a decade. In 2017, he directed a homophobic slur toward Trump during his opening monologue, which landed him in hot water with the Federal Communications Commission, and prompted an official investigation.

This latest incident—though less scandalous than his political outrage—is likely to hit some of his followers closer to home. Three days ago, Colbert made a statement about his recent health crisis on Threads. With typical humor, he joked that his time off wasn’t due to a “turkey overdose” or a “gravy boat capsize,” but a ruptured appendix that required surgery.

Although Colbert took a light-hearted stance on his condition, appendix-ruptures on the whole are considered to be no laughing matter. If not treated immediately, a burst appendix spreads infection throughout the abdominal cavity. This infection, known as peritonitis, can lead to more severe and widespread illness, sepsis, or even death.

Given the comedian’s mature years and the serious nature of his illness, it may be worthwhile to mention that older readers aren’t especially at risk of peritonitis themselves. In fact, a recent study shows the abdominal infection usually strikes people in their late 20s. This falls in line with the widely-accepted knowledge that burst appendixes are more typical of the young.

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