After being diagnosed with colon cancer in 2023, James Van Der Beek has learned that living with the disease is a “full-time job.”
He’s made countless lifestyle changes to support his health, from stretching more and practicing yoga, to trying out the keto diet, and finding “the beauty of just taking things a little bit more slowly and prioritizing rest and really allowing that to be the job,” he tells TODAY.com.
As far as his status with his cancer battle and the road ahead, he says: “I’m just on the journey. ... It’s a process. It’ll probably be a process for the rest of my life.”
The “Dawson’s Creek” alum has continued to work since his diagnosis, starring in the upcoming TV series, “Elle,” about the high school years of the “Legally Blonde” character.
“The greatest thing about work is a cancer doesn’t exist between action and cut,” he says. “It was fun to drop in and just have a blast because it’s such a great cast, a great production, and everybody out there is really talented.”
Van Der Beek is opening up about his colon cancer to increase awareness of the importance of early detection, especially as more people under 50 are being diagnosed. He’s a paid spokesperson for Guardant Health, which offers a blood test to screen for colon cancer, approved by the Food and Drug Administration in July 2024.
While the father of six experienced bowel changes, which led him to undergo a colonoscopy, he stressed the importance of following colon cancer screening guidelines, regardless of whether you have symptoms. People with average risk should start screening at 45, per the American Cancer Society, and those with increased risk should start earlier.
“I got screened at 46,” Van Der Beek says. “I didn’t realize they had dropped it to 45. I thought I was way ahead of the game.”
“Even just the slightest little change, it could be something, but ... don’t think that not having symptoms means you don’t have to get screened, especially for something that is this curable when caught early,” he continues. “That’s really what I want to get across.”
“I ate as well as I could. I was healthy. I was an amazing cardiovascular shape,” he adds. “There was no reason in my mind that I should have gotten a positive diagnosis.”
Since speaking out about his diagnosis, Van Der Beek has heard many times that he’s helped others, from fans and the people in his community alike. “Guys I see at the gas station, people come up to me at a coffee shop, I appreciate it every time,” he recalls.
“That’s been stuff that really makes me cry when people say ‘I got checked, I got a colonoscopy, I got a polyp removed’ ... just to save somebody that journey.”
