Rush Limbaugh says his stage 4 lung cancer has progressed 'in the wrong direction' - USA TODAY

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Rush Limbaugh's stage 4 lung cancer has progressed "in the wrong direction," the conservative commentator and radio host announced. 

More than eight months after revealing his diagnosis, Limbaugh, 69, said Monday on his radio show that his new health developments weren't "dramatic," but had nevertheless recently worsened.

"The idea now is to keep it where it is or maybe have it reduce again," he said, according to a transcript on his website. "We've shown that that is possible. If it happened once, it can happen again. So that's the objective of the current treatment plan."

Limbaugh announced in early February that he had been diagnosed with "advanced lung cancer," confirmed by "two medical institutions back on Jan. 20." Speaking Monday, he said at the time, he did not believe he'd live past September.

More: Rush Limbaugh has advanced cancer. What does that mean? What is stage IV?

"When October 1st hit on the calendar this year, I reminded myself of that thought," Limbaugh said. "If we go back to the end of January, early part of February when I was first told of my diagnosis and the reaction... So given that as a starting point, given that as a baseline, I'm kicking butt – and the future remains pretty good-looking, given all of that."

He added: "This is why I say that I always try to keep everything in perspective on a day-to-day basis and to realize that you just don't know. Nobody does, and you have to give every day."

Limbaugh visited the doctor two weeks ago for "some scans," which showed "some progression of cancer," he said. Previously, his doctors believed the cancer growth had been "reduced" and "manageable." Now, his chemotherapy treatment has been updated in the hopes of keeping "additional progression at bay for as long as possible." 

"Some days are harder than others," he said. "I do get fatigued now. I do get very, very tired now. I'm not gonna mislead you about that. But I am extremely grateful to be able to come here to the studio and to maintain as much normalcy as possible – and it's still true."

Limbaugh is the leading conservative talk radio host, a star of the airwaves for more than three decades having gotten his start in the 1970s. According to Talkers, which tracks audience numbers for talk radio, Limbaugh is the most-listened to radio host in the country, with 15.5 million listeners tuning in weekly as of December 2019. 

He is an ally and friend of President Donald Trump, who awarded Limbaugh the highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, one day after revealing his diagnosis at this year's State of the Union address. 

Limbaugh was visibly stunned and overcome with emotion.

"Rush Limbaugh, thank you for your decades of tireless devotion to our country," Trump said during his speech.

Contributing: Cydney Henderson

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