On Wednesday, the Toucher & Rich crew learned that Fred Toucher would be back on the show Thursday morning. When Thursday’s show began, Toucher opened the mic and explained his diagnosis and took responsibility for lashing out at his co-workers on social media.
After other doctors had dismissed Fred Toucher’s vocal condition as nothing serious, he visited Dr. Steven Zeitels, who has worked with multiple celebrities, including Dick Vitale, to overcome voice problems.
Zeitels diagnosed Toucher with leukoplakia, a condition associated with smoking. It causes a thick buildup on the throat.
“So I go in there, and they put the tube down your nose, and he starts poking around like, ‘Your throat has blown up,’’’ Fred Toucher said.
Toucher admitted that he had been smoking since he eleven years old. He then said that Thursday marked forty days without a cigarette for him.
Rich Shertenlieb took the day off on Thursday. 98.5 The Sports Hub program director Rick Radzik told Chad Finn of The Boston Globe that Shertenlieb had taken a sick day, however it should be noted that there has been some public tension between the Toucher & Rich co-hosts.
Fred Toucher acknowledged that is likely his fault. He tweeted last month that he had not heard from or received any support from most of his co-workers while he was away from the show.
On Thursday, he said that wasn’t entirely true.
“They were completely unfair,’’ Toucher said of his tweets. “I talked to Jon, I talked to Rich. He had offered his connections at Dana Farber, he had offered these things. In retrospect, it was a stupid thing to do.”
He added that while it is no excuse, he felt isolated as he was worried about the future of his career and health. He noted that he hopes his co-host returns soon.
