Former Missouri television anchor Randi Naughton says she is stepping away from public life as her daughter faces a cancer diagnosis just months after giving birth.
Naughton announced Monday that she is putting her “More to Say” podcast on hold so she can devote her time and energy to her 32-year-old daughter, Allex Matuszek, who was recently diagnosed with bile duct cancer.
“Helping my daughter and my family through this journey is my job now. We will leave no stone unturned to get her the best treatment possible,” Naughton wrote in a social media post.
Matuszek, who has tumors on her liver, welcomed her first child, a baby boy named Crue, six months ago.
According to her mother, Matuszek had not been showing symptoms, and the cancer was “found by chance.”
She began treatment this week at Siteman Cancer Center in St. Louis, with doctors also coordinating with the Mayo Clinic and Massachusetts General Hospital.
Naughton said she plans to attend a cancer symposium Friday to better understand her daughter’s illness, which she described as “very rare for someone her age.”
“We are moving forward w/determination & knowledge to be as best equipped as we can so Allex may be around for her son & us for many years,” she wrote. “Any stories, messages, good vibes & yes, prayers are welcome!”
Former KTVI anchor Randi Naughton, left, announced Monday that her daughter Allex Matuszek, right, is battling a rare bile duct cancer
Matuszek has tumors growing on her liver. She began treatment this week at the Siteman Cancer Center in St Louis
The podcaster was a staple in St Louis’s KTVI newsroom for 23 years. She left the station in 2022.
Matuszek is the only child of Naughton and her husband of nearly four decades, Brian.
The couple welcomed their daughter into their lives while Naughton was working at KTVI.
In a July 2022 letter announcing her departure from the station, Naughton shared how she loved working with the team and was leaving on her own accord.
‘For the past 23 years, I’ve been “Waking up Your Day” here on FOX 2 News. Helping to get you going or getting the kids off to school. We have shared severe weather and breaking news,’ she wrote at the time.
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‘I always strive to present the news in a fair, honest, and relatable way. I hope you saw it that way too. I am stepping away from the anchor desk after 30 years. Not because of a scandal or a contract dispute. This is my choice. My call, my chance to sleep past the middle of the night o’clock.’
She said she wanted to ‘experience things outside of this morning show,’ noting how for 23 years she was beginning her work day at 2am.
Naughton thanked KTVI viewers, management and her colleagues, especially her co-anchor and ‘work husband’ John Pertzborn, for their continued support throughout her career.
‘I may be one of the faces of this broadcast but it takes a team to do what we do every day,’ she said.
Matuszek and her husband Camille welcomed a baby boy, Crue, just six months ago
Naughton joined KTVI in 1994 as a sports broadcaster and later moved to the morning show team. She left the station in 2022 and launched a podcast in 2024
She went on to thank Matuszek and Brian for their unwavering support of her career.
‘I’d like to thank my only child, my daughter, Allex, who was born after I started at KTVI. She has literally shared me with you,’ she said in the letter.
‘Now she and her husband, Camille, get mama all to themselves. And of course, to my husband of 34 years, Brian, who is a light sleeper, was probably awakened by my middle of the night alarm almost as much as I was.
‘Thank you for the support, the encouragement and the love over the years, and of course, for putting up with me when mama didn’t get her afternoon nap now we’ll be able to be spending a lot more time together. Maybe fishing, going to restaurants. Wish us luck.’
Naughton’s love for journalism began at her high school in New York state, where she read the morning announcements.
She joined KTVI in 1994 as a sports broadcaster and later moved to the morning show team.
She launched her More to Say with Randi Naughton podcast in 2024. The program saw her interview entertainers, authors and changemakers.
It is unclear how long Naughton’s hiatus from the program will last.
