‘Botched Homes’: Charlie Kawas Opens Up About Undergoing Chemo While Filming HGTV Show

Earlier this year, Charlie Kawas was living the dream working on construction projects in Florida for clients and filming his new HGTV show Botched Homes. Then six months into production, the New Yorker was thrown for a loop when the 44-year-old was diagnosed with testicular cancer. It turned out doctors found a three-inch mass the size of a grapefruit, along with two smaller ones while getting checked out for severe back pain. 

Rather than halt the production, the husband to wife Pierra and father of two teens Charli and Cami, decided to carry on with the home renovation series. Viewers during the October 7 episode got a chance to see how Kawas somehow managed to keep working in the midst of multiple rounds of chemotherapy. The contractor and master craftsman, who bravely shared his journey through the series, broke the news in September that the cancer was in remission. 

Ahead of the final episodes, we caught up with Kawas to reflect on the season and give us a health update.

Coming off the last episode, what kind of response have you’ve gotten as you share your cancer journey? 

Charlie Kawas: There are many people out there who have gone through cancer, and they can relate. When you hear that someone has cancer, or had cancer, or is in remission, you have a soft spot in your heart for them because you know what they went through. Being someone that already went through it, when the viewers and social media found out that this was the case, that I had to go through chemotherapy while filming the show…We got a lot of positive feedback like, “God bless you.” “Hope you get through this.” “Glad you’re in remission. We love this show.” “Can’t wait for you to get back in action.” There’s so much positivity coming from this.

(HGTV)

This big opportunity of having an HGTV show comes up and you get the diagnosis while filming. What was your initial reaction? Was there any talk about pausing filming? 

Listen, I’ve been working in the business since I’m a kid. I eat, drink, sleep construction. That’s what I do. That’s what I love to do. The fact that I got the opportunity to film a TV show doing what I love was huge. Then I got hit with a curveball out of nowhere, being diagnosed with testicular cancer. We were all in shock. My family was in shock. I was in shock. The homeowners who hired me were in shock. The production company, too. It wasn’t something we expected. Everybody said, “Listen, we’re ready to pause it. Let’s stop. Your health is more important. Do what you need to do.”

When I got diagnosed, I still had a lot of responsibility. I had these homeowners who put trust in me, who were already scammed from the previous contractor. It was my responsibility to do it right and finish the project and get these people into a safe place. Regardless, whether I had to go through the medical treatment or not, I still had to get these projects done. When I had the opportunity to say, “It doesn’t make sense to stop filming. I still have to get through the jobs. I still have to get them done. We’re in the middle of filming a TV show. Let’s just include it. I have to get it done regardless. Let’s just keep it going exactly the way we have it.” That’s what we did. 

You’re very hands-on with your projects. How hard was it for you to relinquish some control and kind of lean in on the crew more? 

Whether I’m doing the heavy lifting or not, I’m still on the job. There’s always problems that arise. What makes me good as a contractor is I’m very good at problem solving. I call myself a professional problem solver. When I’m on the job, it’s easy. We have a problem, we keep moving. The fact that I was in a chair hooked up to an IV five hours a day, five days a week, it was very difficult to solve some of these problems. I was in a lot of pain. I didn’t have much energy. I was sleeping a lot. I was getting the calls from the chair, and I was trying to problem-solve because you have to remember I’m the main guy. I was on the job, I had all the answers, I had the designs in my head. We had some stuff on the paper, on the drawings, but a lot was in my head.  So now when I’m not there, it could be challenging for some of the guys. Don’t get me wrong, I do have very good guys that work with me.

But they’re used to working with me on the job, and the fact that I had to do it over the phone was very, very challenging. There were times where I would do a week of chemo and build up the energy to be on the job the following Saturday and try and help, and try and get things done because we did have a timeline. We had these homeowners that needed to get back into their house. You can’t just pause everything because I got sick, so I had to get there, and I had to get it done. I had to sit on a bucket a few times because I was dizzy or lightheaded or low energy. I can’t believe it, but I still made it happen. 

We’re deep into the season now. How do you look back on the projects we’ve seen so far including the most recent frat house reno and banana bathroom? South Florida is certainly a unique place all its own. 

Oh, I tell you, I’m a big fan of Florida myself. I’m born and raised in New York, but I love Florida. You know, my entire family lives in New York. They ask, “When are you coming to visit?” I said, “Listen, I’ll send you a plane ticket. You could come whenever you want.  I’m here. Come visit me.” But I agree, Florida is a very, very special place. It’s like we’re living in a resort daily. You know, it’s beautiful. But as far as the jobs, the frat house, what was going on there? You had the kegerator. You had painted walls, “Welcome to the Swamp.” We’re trying to give these homeowners a space that they can feel proud of, and feel comfortable, and safe. It’s very rewarding to be able to restore these families’ confidence if they already had such a bad experience or a bad design. 

The next episode you’re challenged with the mom with the rhinestone bathroom. What do you remember about that one? 

The single mom you can’t blame. You have a certain amount of money in the budget, and you got to make do. You have your kids. You have the schools. You have a lifestyle you have to pay for, and you just want to make it right. The mom was amazing. She was very creative with some of the stuff she did in the bedroom for her kids to make it beautiful. But the question also is if it’s safe. Not every homeowner is educated enough to know what’s safe and what’s not.  You see a facade, but what’s behind the walls? And unfortunately, in that particular bathroom the exhaust fan was completely clogged and caked on with dust, so all the moisture in the bathroom couldn’t escape. There was tons and tons and tons of mold. That accumulated behind this drywall. How would she ever know that if she didn’t call us in to see this?

HGTV

Another fun aspect of the show is the crew you work with. You could almost make a second show with the guys and girls you work alongside.

I tell you there’s some camaraderie between the crew. They’re from New York, they’re from up North, and we were trained a certain way. So we have that mentality where we just bounce ideas off each other, and we work really hard together, and it’s a great experience. But then we paired up with Courtney [Ibars], the designer, and others So, it’s really one big happy family, and we get along so well. It’s such a great experience. I mean, the jokes and the laughs and the fun we have, it’s almost like you’re not at work. You feel like you’re hanging out with your friends. 

What do you want to say about the eighth episode on October 21. Anything you can tease? 

Well, I tell you, it’s probably one of my favorite renovations throughout the whole season. It’s a huge transformation. We have some really, really exciting news that I got to share. It’s very touching in a way because I got to share my news with my family. After all the hardship and tough stuff that we went through, we got to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Related

HGTV's Alison Victoria Dishes on 'Sin City Rehab' Season 2, Her Love Life & More

How do you feel today?

I feel great. Season 1 is done. We’re on HGTV. We have these great eight episodes that we’ve done. It came out amazing. I couldn’t be any more happier. My body is starting to grow hair back on my head. I get the hair on my face. I put a little weight back on. I’m getting ready to get back on social media, start doing my typical how-to videos again. I like to teach the next generation because that’s what’s very important to me. You get a lot of kids that come out of high school, and they don’t go to college, and they don’t know where to go. Thanks to social media, we’re able to teach these guys that you can be extremely successful with the trade. That’s why I take as much passion and pride into my social media videos that I share to try and show how we do it the right way. I’m glad that I’m gearing up to get back on there. I’ve got a couple jobs lined up. My back and neck still hurt a little bit. I feel like there might have been some aftermath, but I’m ready to go. I’m excited. 

Botched Homes, Wednesdays, 10/9c, HGTV