KNBR has laid off longtime Bay Area voice Greg Papa, 63, who was diagnosed with leukemia just over a year ago and returned to his North Bay home last month after a life-threatening 78-day hospital stay that included lung failure.

The station also parted with Greg Silver, who had been Papa’s partner on their midday KNBR talk show. The pair will be replaced on their 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. show by John Lund, a longtime Bay Area radio voice who was fired by KNBR in November 2024.

Silver confirmed the news, which was first reported by SFGate.com. Papa declined comment. KNBR program director Mike Hohler did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Papa, a 42-year broadcasting veteran and four-time California Sportscaster of the Year, has a separate contract with the San Francisco 49ers. He’s served as the team radio play-by-play man since 2019. His employment status with the organization remains unchanged, a team spokesman said.

Papa recently spoke with the Chronicle to detail his health journey since he underwent a successful bone marrow transplant on March 4. He is at home, using supplemental oxygen, but he’s cancer-free and his oxygen needs have significantly decreased since both lungs collapsed during his nearly three-month stay at UCSF Medical Center.

Papa was optimistic he could return to his KNBR show and work from his home studio as he did last year when he was undergoing two rounds of chemotherapy. Papa returned to the show, two months after he was diagnosed with leukemia, and remained on the air up until he began preparing for his bone marrow transplant.

Papa’s voice sounded strong throughout a two-hour phone interview last month. However, he acknowledged the preparation, energy, focus and travel required to return to the 49ers’ booth was why it was uncertain he could continue his play-by-play career.

“The radio show would be something that’s obviously much easier to return to,” Papa said. “I could do it from my house. Doing a football game is a different challenge.”

“When I’m off the radio show, I don’t get paid,” Papa said. “And then there’s home care. There’s ancillary expenses. The medication. There was one medication I just started taking that was $5,000 for a month’s bottle. We were able to get it down to zero.

“But cancer is unfair. And it affects you physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. And then it ultimately gets you financially.”

Silver, 27, joined Papa on KNBR’s midday show after Lund, Papa’s previous co-host, and Tom Tolbert were fired in November 2024. Silver joined the station on a part-time basis in April 2023. On Wednesday, Silver expressed appreciation for KNBR’s John Dickinson and Bill Laskey, with whom he worked on Warriors and Giants postgame shows, respectively, before he was promoted. He was particularly grateful for his time with Papa.

“I’ve gotten a lot better at not caring what people say and blocking out of some of the noise as a younger guy in this industry,” Silver said. “What truly allowed me to get there is that Greg Papa, who has been doing sports broadcasting over a decade beyond my life span, gave me trust and respect as a co-host.

“And that’s not the kind of the thing that would just happen. He wouldn’t just hand that out for nothing. So to have that dynamic and to grow closer because of what he’s dealt with medically, I can’t express how much that means.”

Silver will be part of Cal football coverage this season. On Tuesday, Cal announced a 30-minute postgame show on NBC Sports Bay Area that Silver will co-host with Patrick Laird.