Al Roker reveals prostate cancer diagnosis, will take time off from ‘Today’ show
Beloved weatherman Al Roker revealed he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and will take some time off from his co-hosting duties on “Today” while he undergoes treatment.
The 66-year-old television personality made the announcement Friday morning during a segment of the NBC morning show.
"I don’t want people thinking, ‘Oh, poor Al,’ you know, because I’m gonna be okay,” he said.
Roker is slated to have his prostate removed next week at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan. Dr. Vincent Laudone, who is expected to perform the surgery, also appeared on the broadcast to discuss Roker’s treatment plan.
“Fortunately his cancer appears somewhat limited or confined to the prostate, but because it’s more aggressive, we wanted to treat it, and after discussion regarding all of the different options — surgery, radiation, focal therapy — we settled on removing the prostate,” he explained.
Roker also discussed the moment his doctor first revealed the diagnosis, as well as his regrets about not bringing his wife, Deborah Roberts, along for the life-changing appointment.
“When he started, he closed his door and said, ‘I always like to have these discussions face to face.' And I was like, ‘Uh-oh. Well, that doesn’t sound good,’” Roker recalled. “You hear the word ‘cancer’ and your mind goes, it’s the next level, you know?”
One of the most challenging parts, he said, was that while there was nothing about him that had changed on the outside, he still “knew there was something intrinsically, inherently, internally different.”
Roker added of his wife: “I feel badly, because I didn’t tell Deborah to come with me. In hindsight, boy I wish I’d told her to come.”
Roker said he opted to share his diagnosis and treatment journey with the hopes of inspiring others, particularly Black men, to go in for the proper checkups.
“The problem for African Americans is ... any number of reasons from genetics to access to health care, and so we want to make it available and let people know they got to get checked,” the weatherman said.
According to the Prostate Cancer Foundation, African American men should talk to their doctor about being screened for prostate cancer at age 40. The American Cancer Society similarly recommended screenings for African Americans and men 45 years and older who have had a father or brother diagnosed with prostate cancer before 65.
