The host revealed that she has vocal nodules and a polyp and will be away from the morning show for the first couple of weeks in the new year.

Savannah Guthrie taking leave of absence from *Today *to undergo surgery: ‘It’s my last day for a little while’

The host revealed that she has vocal nodules and a polyp and will be away from the morning show for the first couple of weeks in the new year.

By Mekishana Pierre

Mekishana Pierre

Mekishana Pierre is a news writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2025. Her work has previously appeared on *Entertainment Tonight* and Popsugar.

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December 19, 2025 12:07 p.m. ET

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Savannah Guthrie on 'Today'. Credit:

Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty

Savannah Guthrie is taking some time away from *Today* to take care of her heath.

On Friday, the 53-year-old cohost announced that she will undergo surgery on her vocal cords in the new year, and will take time to recover off-air.

"Some of you have noticed that my voice has been very scratchy and started to crack a little bit like Peter Brady, who was going through a change," Guthrie told viewers, referring to a classic *Brady Bunch* scene that the show helpfully played featuring the middle Brady son's voice cracking while he sang. "Well, I have found out what it is. I have vocal nodules, and now I also have a polyp."

Savannah Guthrie on 'Today'.

Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty

Guthrie assured viewers that it's not "a big, big deal," but explained that she'll have to take off for a "couple of weeks" in order to recover. "So it's my last day for a little while," she added. "So I just want to let everyone know, and if you've been wondering, do I have the world's longest head cold? No, I don't."

Guthrie admitted that she's "really excited" to have finally diagnosed the problem and found a fix.

"This has been going on for years, honestly,” she told cohosts Craig Melvin, Al Roker, and Sheinelle Jones.

But the mother of two was in good spirits about the entire situation. "You'll love this, guys. I have to be silent for a couple of weeks, totally silent," she quipped. "Christmas coming early for my family."

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Jones, who shared that she also had surgery on one of her vocal cords, told Guthrie that she can use the opportunity for actual rest. "The silver lining is you have permission to be still. The house gets quiet. The kids are going to want to help you out," Jones said of Guthrie's two children, Vale and Charley. "It'll be great. You'll be fine"

The mother of three even gave Guthrie the whiteboard she used to "speak" during her own recovery period to use at home.****"A lot of the greats have done it, maybe you'll come out singing like, I don't know, Celine Dion," Jones told Guthrie.

"Well, you know, it's really funny, I used to sing," Guthrie responded. "Then I couldn't sing anymore and then I couldn't speak anymore. So who knows, guys, the tour is happening in 2026."

Savannah Guthrie.

Dia Dipasupil/Getty

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It's not the first time Guthrie has had to let *Today* viewers know she's taking time away from the stage for a health recovery.

In 2019, she had to undergo eye surgery to reattach her right retina after her son, then 3, accidentally hit her with a sharp toy train. Guthrie initially had near-daily laser surgeries in hopes that doctors would be able to fix the tear with less-invasive laser surgery, but when the laser treatments were unsuccessful, doctors decided Guthrie needed the full retinal surgery on her right eye.

Then, in 2020, she underwent cataract surgery and called the procedure a success. In 2021, she revealed she underwent another operation on her eye.**** "One last teeny tiny eye surgery and I'm back in business!!!" she wrote on Instagram, sharing a photo of herself with a cover over her left eye.**

Watch Guthrie's announcement above.

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