James Van der beek died! 48 yo :(

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is typically a beatable cancer. (I’m a colon cancer survivor).
Get your colonoscopy. Follow your med team’s recommendations of gold standard treatment.

I personally know multiple folks diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer in their 30s--all of them with no apparent risk factors. Rates are rising among young people, who are often diagnosed before they are even eligible for colonoscopies, and often at stages where it's not really treatable. But yes, if you are 45, get your colonoscopy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is typically a beatable cancer. (I’m a colon cancer survivor).
Get your colonoscopy. Follow your med team’s recommendations of gold standard treatment.

He chose to treat the cancer “holistically” and tried “a bunch of different things”.
It’s 100% his choice and decision. But others should not take a stage 3 colorectal cancer diagnosis as a death sentence. Statistically it’s a beatable cancer dx.

What is the source of this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please get your colonoscopies! 45 with no family history, younger if you you have a history.

James got his. Feels like you are blaming him.

I wasn't blaming him. We (society) need to be aware, we need to be proactive. We need to stop making regular screenings mountains to be fretted over and avoided. Everyone has a body and that body needs care, which includes immunizations (HPV), colonoscopies, mammograms and pap smears for women, and prostate checks for males. These shouldn't be taboo, scary things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So sad for his six children and his wife.

Me too. It seems like Kimberly has never worked (at least since she married him). I hope he had good life insurance. Raising six kids and maintaining a big farm in Texas (or anywhere, really) must be incredibly expensive. I have a feeling they weren't in a good place financially since James was auctioning off memorabilia from his football movie.

Yes, I assumed that, because the Dawson's Creek Reunion was a benefit organized for the benefit of the F Cancer organization and also James Van Der Beek. Michelle (Jen) organized it for him.

https://deadline.com/2025/08/dawsons-creek-cast-reunite-benefit-james-van-der-beek-1236493457/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please get your colonoscopies! 45 with no family history, younger if you you have a history.

James got his. Feels like you are blaming him.

I don’t believe he got them as he should have:

- he was unaware that the screening age had dropped from 50 to 45

- he had changes in his bowel habits and attributed it to caffeine intake rather than speaking to a physician

What?

Who cares if he knew the screening age if he still got one at what turned out to be the recommended screening age?

People have changes in bowel habits for myriad reasons. I hope you don’t suggest that one go running to the doctor or for a colonoscopy as the first step every time? In addition to being impractical on a personal level, it’s impractical on a system level.

He was diagnosed at 46. He did not get screened at 45 and had publicly said he didn’t know screening was recommended at 45. I am suggesting people get tested when recommended and discuss changes in your status with your physician.

I didn't know the screening age has dropped.

But back to the tragic news, it's very sad for his family. The children must be devastated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is typically a beatable cancer. (I’m a colon cancer survivor).
Get your colonoscopy. Follow your med team’s recommendations of gold standard treatment.

* Unless you are diagnosed in your thirties or early 40s
* Unless your doctors write off your symptoms as acid reflux or IBS
* Unless the cancer has metastasized to other organs like the liver and the lungs
* Unless you have a gene mutation that makes your tumor less likely to respond to chemotherapy
* Unless your cancer has metastasized and is no longer resectable

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So sad for his six children and his wife.

Me too. It seems like Kimberly has never worked (at least since she married him). I hope he had good life insurance. Raising six kids and maintaining a big farm in Texas (or anywhere, really) must be incredibly expensive. I have a feeling they weren't in a good place financially since James was auctioning off memorabilia from his football movie.

She has a Go Fund Me up for $500K.

[Anonymous]

I hope he didn't wait . . .

[sorry, had to be said. I'm surprised no one beat me to it]

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is typically a beatable cancer. (I’m a colon cancer survivor).
Get your colonoscopy. Follow your med team’s recommendations of gold standard treatment.

I personally know multiple folks diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer in their 30s--all of them with no apparent risk factors. Rates are rising among young people, who are often diagnosed before they are even eligible for colonoscopies, and often at stages where it's not really treatable. But yes, if you are 45, get your colonoscopy.

Jay Monahan, Katie Couric's then-husband, passed away at age 42.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please get your colonoscopies! 45 with no family history, younger if you you have a history.

James got his. Feels like you are blaming him.

I wasn't blaming him. We (society) need to be aware, we need to be proactive. We need to stop making regular screenings mountains to be fretted over and avoided. Everyone has a body and that body needs care, which includes immunizations (HPV), colonoscopies, mammograms and pap smears for women, and prostate checks for males. These shouldn't be taboo, scary things.

The recommendation changed in 2021, which would have been not long before he turned 45.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is typically a beatable cancer. (I’m a colon cancer survivor).
Get your colonoscopy. Follow your med team’s recommendations of gold standard treatment.

I'm glad you beat it. Thanks for the reminder.

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know why colon cancer rates are rising among young people? So scary.

[Anonymous]

I never watched Dawson's Creek but he was hilarious playing a version of himself on Don't Trust the B---- in Apt. 23.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh this is so awful.

I suspected things were really bad based on how he looked in the video at the Dawson reunion event.

I know. It was tragic.

To someone else's question about why it's rising in younger people -- that's under investigation. Could be processed foods, could be environmental.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is typically a beatable cancer. (I’m a colon cancer survivor).
Get your colonoscopy. Follow your med team’s recommendations of gold standard treatment.

He chose to treat the cancer “holistically” and tried “a bunch of different things”.
It’s 100% his choice and decision. But others should not take a stage 3 colorectal cancer diagnosis as a death sentence. Statistically it’s a beatable cancer dx.

He's given interviews regarding how he chose to treat his cancer. This was his response: that he was trying "a bunch of different things". Other sources have said "holistically".