Broadcast legend Dick Vitale says vocal cords are cancer-free and can return to work soon

Dick Vitale, the legendary college basketball broadcaster, revealed some very positive news after visiting his vocal cord doctor on Wednesday.

Vitale said his vocal cords are cancer-free after having a scope done with his doctor, Steven Zeitels.

Zeitels believes Vitale could be back on the field wearing a headset very soon.

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Dick Vitale, left, and Jon Sciambi shake hands after calling the game between the Texas Longhorns and the Kansas Jayhawks on ESPN at the Moody Center in Austin on March 4, 2023. (Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports)

“Just had a scope on my vocal cords and I was very emotional with the amazing report from Dr. ZEITELS. He said the vocal cords are cancer free and he feels I can return to my love of being in court for @espn,” Vitale wrote on X with photos of himself in the doctor’s chair.

Vitale hasn’t lost his passion for college basketball at 85, but he’s been through tremendous battles with cancer, including melanoma, lymphoma and laryngeal cancer in recent years.

But Vitale announced in December 2024 that he was officially cancer-free, though it was not known if he would return to the court to call some of the nation’s top college basketball games.

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So this news after his check with Zeitels is important because he clearly wants to get back to entertaining the fans with his enthusiastic broadcast on game days.

“Dick, you’re back!” Zeitels said in a video posted to Vitale’s Facebook Watch. “Your vocal cords won’t hold you up.

“We’ve been down this road for a long time. I didn’t know we could get here, but we’re here. And you’re ready to be with your viewers, the players, ESPN, you’re ready to be with everybody again.”

ESPN broadcaster Dick Vitale, left, meets with SEC Commissioner Greg Stankey before a game between Texas A&M and Arkansas in the Southeastern Conference Tournament on March 12, 2022, in Tampa, Florida. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)

Vitale became emotional after Zeitels said those words, and the doctor comforted him, knowing all too well what he’s been through.

“Dickie V” has spent 41 years as a college basketball broadcaster after spending time coaching at various levels, from high school to the NBA.

The New Jersey native spent time coaching at Garfield High School before taking over at his alma mater, East Rutherford High School, where he led teams to two New Jersey state titles.

Vitale would go on to coach as an assistant at Rutgers before heading to the University of Detroit as their head coach. He would stay in the Michigan city to coach its Pistons from 1978-79.

After he finished coaching the Pistons, Vitale joined ESPN and called its first-ever college basketball game in 1979, a game where DePaul beat Wisconsin, and the rest is history.

Dick Vitale has spent 41 years as a college basketball broadcaster, having spent time coaching at various levels, from high school to the NBA. (Ed Zurga/Getty Images)

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Now, Vitale is excited to return to his love, as he says, and it’s safe to say that every college basketball fan can’t wait for his long-awaited return.

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