James Van Der Beek revealed yesterday in an interview for People and on Instagram that he had been diagnosed with colon cancer.
“I have colorectal cancer. I had to face this diagnosis privately and took steps to resolve it, with the support of my incredible family,” he told the magazine.
According to Santé Publique France, this disease “develops from the cells which line the internal wall of the colon or rectum” and represents “the second cause of death from cancer for all sexes combined”. The 47-year-old actor nevertheless sought to reassure his fans about his condition: “There is reason to be optimistic and I feel good.” Moreover, the star of Dawson continues to work despite illness.
Rushed announcement
He recently appeared in an episode of the series Walker and has other projects planned, including the broadcast in December of a two-hour special, entitled The Real Full Monty. This project, in which he shares the spotlight with other male actors and artists, aims to raise public awareness about screening and research into prostate, testicular and colon cancers.
James Van Der Beek also revealed his diagnosis on Instagram, specifying that his announcement had been precipitated by a “tabloid” threatening to reveal his illness before him.
“There is no recipe for announcing this kind of thing, but I had planned to talk about it at length with the magazine People at some point, to raise awareness and tell my story on my own terms. But that plan had to be changed early this morning when I was informed that a tabloid was going to publish the news,” he explained in the caption of a photo showing him with one of his daughters .
More information to come
The star then assured that she felt “confident and good” and promised to share more details “when I feel ready”. Faced with this deluge of information revealed in a short time, James Van Der Beek apologized to those close to him who had not yet been informed. “I apologize to everyone in my life that I was planning to tell myself. Nothing in this process happened the way I wanted… But we’re making do,” he confided.
The actor is the father of six children with his wife Kimberly Brook, whom he married in 2010. The couple welcomed Olivia in 2010, Joshua in 2012, Annabel in 2014, Emilia in 2016, Gwendolyn in 2018 and Jeremiah in 2021.
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