Denver anchor Chris Parente leaves Channel 2's 'Daybreak' Oct. 12 to focus on bladder cancer treatment

Chris Parente, the longtime Denver television anchor who has hosted Channel 2's "Daybreak" for the past seven years, is stepping away from the morning show to concentrate on his battle with bladder cancer. His final broadcast is set for Monday, Oct. 12, 2026.

Parente said the decision follows a year of treatment that began after he noticed blood in his urine on Oct. 11, 2025, just before attending a charity event. He booked a doctor's appointment shortly after that discovery, which led to a bladder cancer diagnosis.

Rather than retreat from public life, Parente said he wants to use his visibility to support others facing similar diagnoses. He described his goal as telling the story of living with cancer in a way that is vulnerable, open, funny and genuine.

"The more I've gotten into this, the more I realize that I want to use my voice to be an advocate for patients," Parente said. "I've always been able to talk. I'm a talker. And I want to use that ability to do some good."

His departure from Channel 2 pauses a career that has spanned decades. Parente began in television in Indiana and Louisville, Kentucky, before moving to Denver. There, he first built a reputation as an entertainment reporter and celebrity interviewer at Fox 31, Channel 2's sister station, before moving into the anchor chair.

A June 2019 profile noted his background in improvisational comedy and his experience as an openly gay news personality. Those elements shaped his approach to on-air storytelling.

Parente acknowledged that before his own diagnosis, he knew little about bladder cancer beyond the public experience of Deion Sanders, the University of Colorado football coach known as Coach Prime, who disclosed his own battle in July 2025.

"I didn't know a damn thing about it other than having followed what happened to Coach Prime," Parente said. "Obviously, nobody knows what it's like until you've gone through it."

Since then, he has spoken openly about the physical and emotional toll of treatment. He said early detection made a difference in his case and urged viewers to pay attention to warning signs.

Parente's last show falls exactly one year and one day after he first noticed symptoms in a bathroom before a charity appearance.

As he prepares to leave the studio, Parente said his focus is on recovery and advocacy. He plans to continue sharing his experience publicly, including humor and honesty along with the realities of treatment.

His final "Daybreak" broadcast airs Monday morning on Channel 2.