Gottschalk on shock diagnosis "Unfortunately, my cancer is considered particularly aggressive"
Gottschalk had cancer surgery a few months ago. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
Gottschalk has spoken about cancer in an interview. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
After the operations, Thomas Gottschalk now has to take strong painkillers. (archive picture)
Image: Philipp von Ditfurth/dpa
Thomas Gottschalk (r.) and his wife Karina walk the red carpet at the 77th Bambi Awards at the Bavaria Film Studios near Munich. (November 13, 2025)
Image: Keystone/dpa/Felix Hörhager
Gottschalk's appearance at the Bambi award ceremony for Cher caused criticism. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
For many people, Gottschalk is the epitome of "Wetten, dass...?". (archive image)
Image: Philipp von Ditfurth/dpa
Gottschalk had cancer surgery a few months ago. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
Gottschalk has spoken about cancer in an interview. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
After the operations, Thomas Gottschalk now has to take strong painkillers. (archive picture)
Image: Philipp von Ditfurth/dpa
Thomas Gottschalk (r.) and his wife Karina walk the red carpet at the 77th Bambi Awards at the Bavaria Film Studios near Munich. (November 13, 2025)
Image: Keystone/dpa/Felix Hörhager
Gottschalk's appearance at the Bambi award ceremony for Cher caused criticism. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
For many people, Gottschalk is the epitome of "Wetten, dass...?". (archive image)
Image: Philipp von Ditfurth/dpa
Presenter Thomas Gottschalk (75) has made his cancer diagnosis public. "I think it's time we put our cards on the table. I have cancer," he said in an interview with "Bild", which he gave together with his wife Karina.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Thomas Gottschalk has cancer.
- The 75-year-old made the diagnosis public in an interview with "Bild".
- He has already undergone two operations.
TV legend Thomas Gottschalk explains in the "Bild" interview: "I think it's time we put our cards on the table. I have cancer." He has already undergone two operations.
It was a so-called epithelioid angiosarcoma - a rare, malignant tumor on the blood vessels. "Thomas was operated on immediately. They had to remove part of the ureter as well as the bladder," explains his wife Karina Mross.
The complicated cancer operation was followed by another shock. New findings from the pathology department revealed that Gottschalk would have to have a second operation. "There was much more tissue affected by the cancer than suspected," said the 62-year-old.
"It was madness"
The first operation took seven hours - and the second was also quite a challenge, as the show host reports: "During the second operation, they removed large sections of soft tissue from my pelvis. Unfortunately, my cancer is particularly aggressive."
Despite this, the couple managed to keep the illness a secret from the public: "It was madness. Thomas didn't allow himself any rest. We secretly went to the clinic every day. Thomas had 33 radiotherapy sessions. It was torture," says Karina Mross.
Irritating appearances
Gottschalk had already received the diagnosis almost four months ago. In retrospect, "concealing the illness was probably my biggest mistake," says the 75-year-old. Despite his diagnosis and the operations, Gottschalk continued to make public appearances.
At the Bambi awards ceremony around two weeks ago, the presenter irritated the audience with a fidgety and awkward appearance. He mistook Cher for a double. The entertainer, who had come to the gala with his wife Karina, even earned boos for the sentence: "Here she is, the only woman I have taken seriously in my life." At one point, Gottschalk himself said he was confused.
On Friday evening, Gottschalk had once again caused astonishment during a television appearance. Two weeks after his much-criticized Bambi presentation, this time he was awarded the Austrian TV prize Diamant-Romy himself. At the award ceremony in Kitzbühel, he seemed confused and his voice trembled at times. Among other things, the entertainer was obviously irritated by the time available to him.
Gottschalk's wife Karina was sitting in the audience at the event in Kitzbühel and, according to Bild, watched the audience's reactions with tears in her eyes. The performance was also criticized on social networks.
Gottschalk: "I didn't know myself like that"
Gottschalk explained that it was only after the gala that he realized the effects of the strong painkillers on his mental state. He has been taking painkillers since his operation. "Strong painkillers. Opiates," said Karina in the interview with "Bild". "We thought he was still doing well with them. At home, he's the same as always."
Looking back, Gottschalk is self-critical about his confusion during public appearances: "With these pills, I feel like I'm stuck with my head in a washing machine. I didn't know myself like that."
The master of the Saturday night show
The Saturday evening show was Gottschalk's big stage. For decades, he mastered the art of casual, non-chalant presenting, especially on "Wetten dass ...?" on ZDF. From 1987 to 2011 - apart from a two-year break - and in three special editions in 2021, 2022 and 2023, he hosted Europe's biggest show. Quick-witted, spontaneous and unafraid of international superstars.
He not only distinguished himself as a patterer in flashy outfits, but also as a philanthropist. Someone who enjoyed the spotlight himself, but who always shared the big stage - with rock stars and contestants alike. He didn't get malicious or scathing when a contestant messed up his bet. He showed humanity.
Article with material from sda
