Sister Emily died of pancreatic cancer
Just a couple of years after Jay died, Katie's sister Emily was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and also died, making Katie's 40s extraordinarily painful.
Snapshot · Call Her Daddy
Katie Couric: Sexism, Storytelling & Standing Up to Cancer
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Jun 24, 2026
Where this was said
Jay's Diagnosis: Stage-4 Colon Cancer and Nine Months of Hell
At 1:01:03 · chapter starts 54:30
The interview's most emotionally raw section begins when Alex asks about Jay Monahan's illness. Katie recalls the specific phone call: their Irish nanny Nuala rang to say Jay was doubled over in pain. He was 41 and didn't even have a regular doctor [1] — Katie Couric "Jay Monahan was diagnosed with stage-4 colon cancer at 41, and Katie Couric called pharmaceutical companies, had NBC friends pretend to be …" 54:28 . At her own internist's office, the doctor said 'don't worry, it's not cancer' — and it obviously was, stage 4, spread throughout his liver. Everything changed in a nanosecond. Jay had 9 months to live, and their daughters were 1 and 5 when he was diagnosed. Katie kept working through all of it, finding the Today Show to be her only mental escape — the moment the cameras cut to commercial, the grief hit her again. She became obsessive about finding a cure: calling pharmaceutical companies, having NBC colleagues pretend to be doing cancer specials to access biotech firms and clinical trial data. But in the late 1990s, there were almost no therapies available. She also had to navigate the tabloid invasion of their privacy — a nurse walked into Jay's hospital room and showed them a National Enquirer cover about 'Katie's private pain.' By the end, Katie describes sitting with the terrible reality that there was nothing to figure out.
Girls were 1 and 5 at Jay's diagnosis
When Jay was diagnosed, the Courics' daughters were just 1 and 5 years old, leaving Katie to navigate single parenthood through devastating grief.
Grieving in Public While Anchoring the Today Show
While her husband Jay was dying of stage-4 colon cancer, Katie Couric kept anchoring the Today Show — and says it was her only respite. The moment she went to commercial break, she would fall apart again. Her daughters were 1 and 5. The National Enquirer covered it on its front page while he was still in hospital.
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