Al Roker’s Gleason Score 7+ Prostate Cancer Story

From TV Star to Patient Advocate

Famous Weather Anchor Shares Prostate Cancer Story, Gleason Score 7, and Passionate Plea: “Please Get Screened!”

This interview has been edited for clarity. This is not medical advice. Please consult with your healthcare provider for treatment decisions.

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First Tests & Scans

How did you know to test for your PSA?

You just knew about it. It was one of a battery of tests that your doctor always took along with the digital exam which everybody knows Moon River kind of thing *sings song*.

I knew about the PSA. It was just like your cholesterol and your blood pressure, and it was just one more metric that you measured your health by.

What was your Gleason score

I had a 7+ Gleason score. That wasn’t terrific obviously, but again it also speaks to having access to good healthcare. They could have easily said, “Well, let’s just watch this,” but it was like, “No. Let’s do an MRI.” 

What were the scans and biopsies you underwent for diagnosis

Did the MRI. Didn’t show any target areas. It was like, “Let’s [still] do a biopsy.” That’s when we found the cancer.

It wasn’t really until I did the genetic testing on it at Sloan Kettering that it was like, “Oh, this is pretty aggressive.” There was a lot more than the biopsy showed. 

How were the MRI and the biopsy

Look, it’s not a walk in the park per se. The MRI is a little easier. If you’ve ever been in one of those MRI machines, you’re lying there, you’re still. It’s, I don’t know, about 45 minutes, almost an hour of constant noise.

To be perfectly honest, it wasn’t so bad for me. I think I literally took a nap till we were done because I’m always up early.

The biopsy, you have to get anesthesia and all that stuff. That’s never pleasant, but it’s important, so you put up with it.

I’ve been through so many surgeries in the last several years that it was like, “Okay, what’s one more, here we go.”

The most annoying part about it is really the IV needle, but other than that, you’re under anesthesia so you don’t really realize it. Then you wake up, and boom, you’re done.

Describe the appointment when you got the diagnosis

It was one of those things where I did the biopsy and made an appointment for follow-up at the same time. I didn’t really think anything of it. I just assumed. I guess I thought that if there was a problem, they were going to call.

My doctor came in and closed the door, and he said, “I always like to have these meetings face to face.” It was my first like, “Oh. Wait. What? What does that mean?”

Then he went into it. Truly, I was thinking, it wasn’t even really about the cancer as much as I was like, “Oh, my god. My wife is going to kill me.”

Obviously, she’s very compassionate. She wouldn’t want me getting that diagnosis by myself. Realistically she’s thinking, “What’s the doctor going to think about me as a wife not being there to be there with her husband to get this potentially life-changing news?”

I took in what he said but I just kept thinking, “She’s going to kill me.” If the prostate cancer doesn’t, she will!

My son, Nick, is very sweet. He’s a sweet boy, and he’s got some learning issues. He was really upset and was kind of reacting.

We realized it was happening right about the same time as Alex Trebek. He was conflating pancreatic cancer with prostate cancer. I think he thought I was a goner. It’s like, “Nope. Dad’s going to be around a while longer to bother you.

It was tough on my middle girl because, at the time and still, she was stuck in Paris because of the pandemic so she couldn’t come over. They’ve been very supportive and happy that everything’s turned out okay.

»MORE: Parents describe how they handled cancer with their kids

Surgery (Prostatectomy) & Follow-Up

Describe the surgery (prostatectomy)

I had the surgery done at the beginning of November. I had a shoulder replacement in August, and I’m still doing rehab on that.

How did you process the news of no evidence of disease

Dr. Vincent Laudone was my surgeon, and he’s obviously a real pioneer in this area. Somebody like that has done a whole ton of these. He was very optimistic after the surgery.

We were doing pathology during the procedure. We took out the lymph nodes surrounding that area, didn’t see anything. I was already cautiously optimistic. You’re still waiting for that blood work. Once you get that, it’s a real weight off, and then you’re like, “Okay.”

Now the clock starts again for the next six months. You probably get a little anxious right before that, but here we go.

Survivorship: How do you manage waiting for the next test results

I always keep thinking that five minutes before the doctor walked in, I felt one way. Then five minutes or 30 minutes later, when I’m walking out the door to get in the cab, it was like always this kind of weird because I don’t really feel any different, but somebody says, “Oh, by the way, you have cancer.” Those three words.

Then all of a sudden, you don’t feel differently, you are different. It’s the same with this. You’re still going to be living every six months, but you’re alive. I don’t really think about it. It’s a good feeling.

»MORE: Patients describe dealing with scanxiety and waiting for results

Al the Advocate

What’s your message to men who are reluctant to get screened for cancer

I wouldn’t understand it. Listen, if you have problems finding healthcare or something like that, maybe, I guess. If you’re a guy who goes to the doctor once a year for the physical, you’re already there.

What’s the big deal?

Again, it’s that finger moment (digital exam). That was funny because all along doctors said whenever I had the exam, “It doesn’t seem swollen. You’ve got a small prostate,” which was great. If you’re going to the doctor anyway, why not?

What’s your message specifically for Black men, who are 50% more likely to get diagnosed with prostate cancer and 2x as likely to die from it

You can ignore it at your own peril, but if you love your family, love what you do, love the people around you, you’ve got to do this.

Can the messaging to the African-American community be better

I don’t know that it’s so much the messaging as it is access. Look, the current healthcare system is, I’m not saying this in a negative sense, but it’s a little bit of a factory to it.

Doctors, unfortunately, have to move their patients through. I’m not saying that these are not dedicated doctors and they don’t care about their patient’s health, they do, but by the very nature of the way the healthcare system works now, you can’t spend a lot of time [with each patient].

The importance of access to healthcare for communities of color

The problem with prostate cancer is, there are generally no outward symptoms, but if there are, you’re pretty well down the line with the progression of the disease.

I think making sure that in communities of color, where there can be medical treatment deserts, just like there are food deserts and pharmacological deserts, pharmacy deserts.

We have to make sure that there is access for this.

How important is it to get more diversity in clinical trials?

You look at what we just went through in the pandemic, when obviously, communities of color were far more impacted by the pandemic.

But when it came to the vaccine, there was a very huge push to have a real diversity in the folks who were tested so that we knew that this was safe across all ethnic groups, male and female, things like that.

I think from a research standpoint, especially given that this is far more impactful to men of color, the studies have to reflect that, as well.

Al Inspired Others to Share Their Stories

Pictures Courtesy of: NBC News, Al Roker

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Prostate Cancer Stories