Rhododendron Bush

This is the last year for our Rhododendron Bush.  Here it is in all of it's glory:

The bush's individual blooms are equisite:

If the photo of the entire bush above looked like the bush was a little square, it was.  The inside of the bush is gone.  Part of it was dead and we cut that part out.  It doesn't seem as if it is going to grow back, so we decided after it bloomed, we would remove it.  Here is what the inside of the bush looks like:

It really makes me sad to have to do away with this bush for two reasons.  First, my childhood was spent in West Virginia and the Rhododendron or "Great Laurel" is the state flower of West Virginia.  Everytime I see rhododendron I am reminded of West Virginia and my childhood.  Wherever you drive in the mountains, rhododendron is growing wild on the side of the roads and on hiking trails.  Second, when my husband and I lived in Savannah, TN, we had a small rhododendron in our yard that struggled to survive.  I tried everything to make it healthy and bloom, but to no avail.  It always looked sick and only had a couple of blooms on it each year.  Our rhododendron here is so healthy and blooms profusely, but has become hollow on the inside and too large.

If anyone has an ideas on how to save this bush, please let us know.  If we cut it back, would it come back out in good health?