James Van Der Beek shares first symptom that lead to his ‘shock’ cancer diagnosis
James Van Der Beek has shared the first symptom that led to his cancer diagnosis – and recalled the devastating moment he discovered he had the disease.
The Dawson’s Creek star, 47, shared the news earlier this week that he was battling colorectal cancer.
Now he has spoken People magazine about the change in his body that first alerted him that something was wrong.
He told the publication that he was “in great cardiovascular shape” and always “tried to eat healthy,” so he never expected to get cancer.
“I have always associated cancer with age and with an unhealthy, sedentary lifestyle,” he added.
James Van Der Beek has shared the symptom that led to his cancer diagnosis – and recalled the devastating moment he discovered he had the disease
The actor revealed that he suffered a “change in his bowel habits” last summer, but still didn’t think it was anything serious.
The Dawson’s Creek star, 47, shared the news earlier this week that he was battling colorectal cancer. Now he has spoken to People magazine about the change in his body that alerted him that something was wrong
“I thought maybe I should give up coffee, or maybe not put cream in coffee,” he continued.
“But when I took that out and it didn’t improve, I thought, ‘Okay, I better get this checked out.'”
He then underwent a colonoscopy and received the heartbreaking news that he had stage 3 colorectal cancer.
“I felt really good when I came out of the anesthesia, that I had finally done it,” the 47-year-old recalls.
‘Then the gastroenterologist said in his nicest bedside manner that it was cancer. I think I went into shock.”
James told the outlet that he was undergoing treatment, but did not reveal any details about it.
He added that he is “cautiously optimistic” during this “place of healing,” and emphasized that his “energy level is great.”
When asked what the hardest part was, James – who lives on a beautiful ranch in Texas with his wife Kimberly and six children – said all the “unknown things.”
The actor (seen with his six children) revealed he suffered a “change in his bowel habits” last summer, but didn’t think it was anything serious.
He then underwent a colonoscopy and received the heartbreaking news that he had stage 3 colorectal cancer. He was seen in Dawson’s Creek
“As someone who loves answers, not knowing is one of the hardest things,” he explained. “This has been a crash course in mastering the mind, body and spirit.
James told the outlet that he was undergoing treatment, but did not reveal any details about it. He added that he is “cautiously optimistic.”
“I thought, ‘This is going to get me out of the body, or it’s going to teach me how to actually live in it.’
The Rules of Attraction alum shared the news that he had been diagnosed with cancer via Instagram on Sunday.
At the time, he said he was told a tabloid was planning to publish a story about it, so he was forced to share it online sooner than he would have liked to go public.
“It’s cancer.” About two billion people around the world receive this diagnosis every year. And I am one of them,” he wrote.
“There’s no playbook for how to announce these things, but I planned to talk about it in depth with People magazine soon… to raise awareness and tell my story on my own terms.
“But that plan had to change early this morning when I got word that a tabloid was going to break the news.”
The Rules of Attraction alum shared the news that he had been diagnosed with cancer via Instagram on Sunday
The father-of-six added that he had been “treated” privately and apologized to the people “in his life” who needed to know through the post.
“I have been dealing with this privately until now, getting the treatment and managing my overall health with more focus than ever before,” he continued.
‘I’m in a good place and I feel strong. It was quite an initiation, and I will tell you more when I am ready.
“Apologies to all the people in my life that I wish I could have said to myself. Nothing about this process happened on my favorite timeline…
“But we press on, treating each surprise as a signpost, pointing us toward a greater destiny than we would have discovered without divine intervention.”