Watch Chad get his beard shaved on live TV
No-Shave November is in its waning hours.
All the guys who promised not to shave to raise awareness for men's health can start sharpening their razors.
KHQA's Chad Douglas got his beard shaved Friday morning live on KHQA This Morning, but he reminds everyone of the reason behind all the facial hair.
"If they hadn't found mine early, I might not be here today," Butch Schutte said.
Butch Schutte is a three year prostate cancer survivor. He's also with Great River Hair Replacement in Quincy. We asked him to come dispose of my facial hair this morning. I asked Butch what he thought of No-Shave November as a way to bring awareness to men's health issues like prostate cancer.
"It's no different than having for breast cancer, the pink. Everyone's wearing pink, all of a sudden you see pink, you go, 'oh that's breast cancer awareness," Schutte replied.
The important part of No-Shave November is to make sure men stay healthy. It focuses a lot on prostate and testicular cancer.
"Testicular cancer is not as common. It's typically in the younger age male ages 15 to 35," Dr. Steve Cockrell, a Urologist with Hannibal Clinic, said.
Dr. Steve Cockrell with the Hannibal Clinic says both testicular and prostate cancer are treatable if caught early. That's why it's important to bring up any symptoms with your regular doctor.
"As men get older, their prostates get bigger, they start having problems. They start having problems with urination, but those symptoms can be the same as prostate cancer," Dr. Cockrell said.
White men should start getting tested for prostate cancer at age 50. Black men, or men with a family history, should start getting checked at 40. One test is a prostate specific antigen, or PSA, blood test.
"I know that's a controversial test. It's not controversial among urologists. We think it's a good test. There was controversy over the last year about that. It's not a perfect test, but it's the best test that we have," Dr. Cockrell explained.
Just ask Butch Schutte who credits his PSA with saving his life. He offers this advice to people who don't want to get tested ... "Women that have men that won't go, I feel they should say, 'hey, I have my pap smear done every year and you should have your PSA done every year. It's just a matter of do you want to live or do you want to die at an early age," Schutte said.
While No-Shave November focuses mainly on prostate and testicular cancer, Dr. Cockrell says men should also pay to other deadly diseases such as hypertension, high cholesterol, and diabetes.
Click here to see time-lapse video of Chad's transformation from day 1 to 30.
TV Station Profiles & Public Inspection Files forKHQA