WLEX anchor Nancy Cox will be off the air for major surgery

Nancy Cox, a longtime anchor and reporter with WLEX-TV 18 (Spectrum Ch. 8), will undergo major back surgery in April and be off the air for an extended time.

Cox, a former Miss Kentucky, announced the upcoming surgery on Facebook on March 21.

Cox was diagnosed with scoliosis at 14. The April surgery will be Cox’s second in four years. Although she is preparing for initial intense pain, she hopes that, in the end, the upcoming surgery will give her more substantial, long-lasting relief.

“To say my last recovery was grueling is a huge understatement,” Cox said in her post. “I was not mentally prepared for the level and duration of the pain. I'm trying to be more prepared this time.”

Cox has been off of the 11 p.m. news, she says, to rest and prepare for the surgery. After the operation, she will be off the air for at least eight weeks and possibly as long as 12 weeks, she said in a telephone interview.

On Facebook, Cox said, “My hope is that by writing about this, my focus will remain positive, my family will stay informed and better able to understand, and hopefully, others can take away something that could help them.”

Cox, who was Miss Kentucky 1990, has been with WLEX since 1992. She has won four Emmy Awards for anchoring and reporting, a regional Edward R. Murrow award and multiple Kentucky Associated Press awards.

This story was originally published March 26, 2018 at 3:37 PM with the headline "WLEX anchor Nancy Cox will be off the air for major surgery."