Dawson's Creek star James Van Der Beek shocked fans when he went public with the fact that he had colorectal cancer. The actor announced the sad news on social media.
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At this time, Van Der Beek didn't reveal what stage of cancer he had. There are four stages of cancer with Stage 4 being the most severe. In its early stages, colorectal cancer generally shows no symptoms. Often, people mistake it for hemorrhoids or possibly irritable bowel syndrome.
Van Der Beek shared that he has cancer but is hopeful about the future.
"'It is cancer...' Each year, approximately 2 billion people around the world receive this diagnosis," he wrote. "And I'm one of them."
He said that he wanted to share his story.
"There's no playbook for how announce these things, but I'd planned on talking about it at length with People magazine at some point soon ... to raise awareness and tell my story on my own terms," he continued. "But that plan had to be altered early this morning when I was informed that a tabloid was going to run with the news."
James Van Der Beek Talks Diagnosis
Van Der Beek also wrote that he, "been dealing with this privately until now, getting treatment and dialing in my overall health with greater focus than ever before."
Van Der Beek said that he is hopeful about the future and what it holds. He also explained that he went public with the disease to avoid it leaking through the tabloids. He apologized that he didn't get to tell some of the people in his life before.
"I'm in a good place and feeling strong," he wrote. "It's been quite the initiation, and I'll tell you more when I'm ready. Apologies to all the people in my life who I'd planned on telling myself. Nothing about this process has occurred on my preferred timeline. ... But we roll with it, taking each surprise as a signpost, pointing us toward a greater destiny than we would have discovered without divine intervention."
"Please know that my family and I deeply appreciate all the love and support," he concluded. "More to come."
