Al Roker Sends Well Wishes to Joe Biden After Prostate Cancer Diagnosis

Published: May 19, 2025

Al Roker, a Today co-anchor, shared his own experience with prostate cancer following former President Joe Biden's diagnosis, offering words of encouragement and support.

Roker, 70, took to social media to express his well wishes to Biden, saying, "Mr. President. As I found out from my battle with prostate cancer, you are part of a group that no one wants to be part of, but knowing you, you will face this latest challenge with courage, humor and grace."

The two have a long-standing friendship, with Roker receiving a surprise call from Biden after his shoulder surgery in 2014 and discussing the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2021.

Roker also recalled his own diagnosis with prostate cancer in 2020 during a recent episode of Today. He shared that he had an 8 on the Gleason scale, but fortunately, it was caught early, allowing for effective management.

According to the American Cancer Society, a prostate cancer's grade group is a measure of how likely the cancer is to spread quickly. Grade group 5, like Biden's diagnosis, means the cancer might or might not be growing outside the prostate and into nearby tissues but has not spread to nearby lymph nodes or elsewhere in the body.

Roker announced his own diagnosis on Today in November 2020, saying it was a "good news-bad news kind of thing" since they caught it early, but the cancer was aggressive, requiring treatment.

In June 2024, Roker wrote an exclusive essay about experiencing nerves for a six-month check-up after surgery. He expressed gratitude for early detection, which allowed him to become a grandfather to his daughter Courtney's child, Sky, in July 2023.