Katie Couric knows best how cruel colon cancer can be and how important it is to start treatment as soon as the cancerous tumors are formed. Katie Couric has actually lost her husband, Jay Monahan, due to colon cancer. The husband of the famous journalist died at the age of only 42 after being diagnosed with the disease. Losing her husband due to this condition has only determined Katie Couric work harder in helping others avoid the suffering and pain she has been through herself. Jay received the diagnosis when he already was suffering of advanced colon cancer and the disease had already spread throughout his body, creating liver metastasis. Only a few months after being diagnosed with the terrible disease, Jay passed away.

Her tragic personal experience made Katie Couric realize that although colon cancer is one of the most preventable types of cancers, it is the main killer among cancer related patients. With routine screening and simple prevention methods, people would not die from colon cancer and this is exactly what Katie Couric wants to teach the world though her colon cancer awareness campaigns. She actually decided to take a colon exam herself, during a live television show, all with the purpose to let everyone know how simple it can be. Katie Couric has become an important spokesperson for colon cancer awareness, but the star also conducted campaigns for the awareness of other types of cancers.

Katie Couric has a career that is very complex and that gives her the opportunity to meet famous people such as presidents, celebrities, businessmen, and to also travel a lot all around the world. It can be very tiring, but Katie Couric likes very much her job that this it does not seem too hard for her. Plus, she already has enough experience, so it is not something new for her. Katie Couric is one of the most reliable journalists in the United States. She was guest-hosted The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, which increased the audience of the show immediately, so she is very appreciated. The journalist also participated in many events,  conferences and was also very interested in colorectal cancer research. Today, Katie Couric is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Regarding her personal life, Katie Couric married Jay Monahan in 1989 and together they had two nice daughters called Ellie and Caroline. Unfortunately, her husband died of colon cancer when he was only 42, so this is the cause why Couric is a spokeswoman for this disuse awareness. In 2011, the journalist became the Honorary National Chair of the National Parkinson Foundation’s Moving Day Campaign. It is rumoured that she had a love relationship with Tom Werner, a television producer.  Another relationship that he had was with Brooks Perlin, a financial executive, but they split after five years together.

Katie Couric also interviewed many international political figures and celebrities such as Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, George Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. Katie Couric won multiple television reporting awards through her career. One of the most impressive things she has ever done was to show her mammogram on one of her live shows. This took place in October, and ever since she made this gesture, October has been considered the month of Cancer Breast Awareness. Moreover, Katie Couric received an honorary doctor of science degree for the efforts she put in raising awareness of colorectal cancer and breast cancer, and for the commitment she has towards the Case Western Reserve University advanced medical research department.

Besides the fact that Katie Couric is a great TV personality, she is also a great humanitarian. Consequently, she has become the Honorary National Chair of the National Parkinson Foundation, an important campaign to draw attention on Parkinson disease on a national level. She decided to join this humanitarian campaign, because her father was diagnosed with Parkinson disease and died from additional complications. Katie Couric is perhaps one of the most influential TV celebrities, alongside Oprah Winfrey, who is constantly involved in charity activities and book writing. It is a sure fact that people will still be hearing from Katie Couric.

Ten years later, in 1989, she married Jay Monathan. They have two daughters. Elinor and Caroline, born in 1991 and 1996, respectively. Unfortunately, her husband passed away in 1998, at only 42 years old. The cause of death was colon cancer. Since then, Katie Couric is the spokesperson for colon cancer awareness. She wanted people to be aware of this merciless disease, so she underwent an on-air colonoscopy. Her campaign was a success. As a result, the number of colonoscopies almost doubled. This is what a powerful women can do with her voice: making people aware of the risks they are exposed to and possibly even saving some of them.

Based on this success, she broadcasted her own mammogram, on the Today show. It was aired in October, so October became the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Later in 2001, Katie Couric’s sister, a Virginia Democratic state senator, died from pancreatic cancer. After her husband’s sudden death, Katie became very sensitive, so her sister’s death was devastating. She has two more siblings, Clara and John, who supported her during this difficult time.

Her father was suffering from Parkinson’s disease, so she also militates for the spotting of the Parkinson’s disease and she became e the Honorary National Chair of the National Parkinson Foundation’s Moving Day campaign. Katie’s father died in 2011.

All of these tragedies only made Katie Couric stronger. She became a better person, always willing to help the people around her and to prevent them from going through what she has been through. She now plans to host a daily talk-show on ABC, where she will talk about all kinds of problems with her guests, so that the audience will receive the best advices.

Katie was born in Arlington, Virginia on January 7th, 1957 to mother Elinor Tullie and John Martin Couric. Her mother was a homemaker mostly, but still had her own career in mind with writing when she could find the time. Her father worked in public relations and was also a new editor at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Through her younger years, Couric was involved in her schools by being a cheerleader at her high school and then going on to join a sorority at the University of Virginia.

Most well known for her work on NBC’s Today from 1991 to 2006, she has since moved on to bigger deals. Since she left Today, she has become the solo anchor on CBS’s Evening News, is working as a correspondent for 60 Minutes and even has her own online Twitter blog. This makes her the first female solo anchor and also one of the most well versed, widely known, and highly successful female journalists in the world.