Taking Action! Al Roker Tells Dr. Oz Why He Didn't Just 'Brush' His Prostate Cancer Diagnosis 'Under The Rug'
America's beloved weatherman Al Roker joined Dr. Oz to talk about his cancer recovery and thoughts on the COVID-19 vaccine during the Friday, February 26, episode of The Dr. Oz Show.
When Dr. Oz asked the 66-year-old why he felt it was important to share his personal health battle, especially something as potentially problematic as prostate cancer, Roker — who returned to the TODAY show on November 17, five days after he underwent prostate cancer surgery — responded: "I think it's one of these things that you can do it in private and you can just brush it under the rug and deal with it, or you can try to help folks.
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"For a lot of guys, I think we tend to somewhat put our heads in the sand," he candidly stated. "If it's not for our significant others, we would leave it to chance. So I thought, 'Why not do this and get it out there so that maybe if one person sees it and goes, 'Maybe I should get checked,' then it was worth it.'"
The host and Roker — who got vaccinated on live TV — also discussed the COVID-19 vaccine and why he felt it is safe.
"I'm very fortunate in that I have a number of family members who are in the medical community. I've got a sister who is a nurse, I've got a brother-in-law who is a doctor, a niece who's a nurse," Roker shared. "So I know that this is based in science, that it has to be."
Without getting too much "into politics," Roker went on to share his thoughts on people who doubt the vaccine.
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"When I talk to other folks, and by the way, not just Black folks, but some white folks, and some white folks in the medical community, who are saying, 'Well, wait a little while.' I was like, 'What, are you crazy?'" Roker said. "It's interesting. It cuts across a number of lines. I don't want to get into politics, but I think there's been just this erosion of trust in our government that has now seeped into other parts of our society."
As OK! previously reported, Roker first announced his cancer diagnoses on the TODAY show on November 6.
"It’s a good news-bad news kind of thing," the weatherman said at the time on-air. "Good news is we caught it early. Not great news is that it’s a little aggressive, so I’m going to be taking some time off to take care of this."
