Deciding Whether to Keep Diagnosis Private or Share
- “Dawson’s Creek” star James Van Der Beek, 47, went public with his colorectal cancer diagnosis last month, and now, as a two-hour special of “The Real Full Monty” is set to air on FOX to raise awareness on the importance of cancer screenings, his costar is praising the dad of six for his strength and positivity amid adversity.
- Van Der Beek went public with his stage 3 colorectal cancer, which began in August 2023, last month.
- Some people battling a disease like cancer are open to sharing their experiences as much as they can, while others prefer to keep it to themselves. SurvivorNet experts say both approaches and everything in between are valid.
- It’s important to remember that choosing to share a cancer journey is a personal choice, whether you’re a celebrity or not, and the same goes for other private topics.
- Coping with a diagnosis or some other stressor in your life can be an emotional experience that affects your mental health. Psychiatrist Dr. Lori Plutchik suggests people facing these kinds of challenges tap into their support group to help navigate their emotions.
- Remember, focusing on positivity and hope through cancer can positively impact your experience.
The two-hour special of “The Real Full Monty” is set to air on Dec. 9 on FOX and will feature celebs Anthony Anderson, Taye Diggs, NFLs Chris Jones, Bruno Tonioli, Posey and Van Der Beek.
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As for how Posey reacted to Van Der Beek’s diagnosis, and his decision to go public with such a private matter, he recounted, “I was like, ‘Sh*t.’ I just said, ‘If you catch it late, it’s too late.’ I immediately apologized. I said, ‘James, I didn’t mean for that to be harsh.’
“He said, ‘No, you’re right. That’s why we’re doing the show, so that we can inspire people to get screened early.”
Posey continued, “I have respected him ever since I was a kid, but hearing that, and then knowing that he’s still here with us doing this, I don’t know if I would do that if I were in his position. I really don’t know.
“I admire him for going along with this, not backing down, and also having this easygoing attitude this entire time. He’s really strong. Just talking about it now chokes me up.”
SN & You Presents Mental Health: Coping With Emotions
Posey also admitted that “none” of his colleagues on “The Real Full Monty” knew about Van Der Beek’s diagnosis.
He continued, “It’s kind of a serendipitous thing for him to even be asked” to do the show in the first place.
The special encourages men to strip the stigma around those cancers and get checked. It follows the stars as they discuss the health issues and then rehearse for the revealing performance. The special, based on one that first aired in the United Kingdom, culminates with them getting fully naked on stage in front of a live audience.
“The whole purpose is saying: We are getting naked in front of millions of people. You can do it in front of your doctor and get checked out,” said Posey, who recently underwent a preventive full-body MRI scan to check for cancer. “The concept really hit home for me. It’s just to save people’s lives.”
As for how Posey is grieving after losing his mom 10 years ago, he said, “Every year is a new experience for me. I go with my gut on it and don’t push anything away. I don’t hide. I’m sober [since 2020].
“I’m taking everything in as it comes. I’m going to be present. I’m going to visit her headstone, it’s a beautiful plot, meditate and just try to feel as much as I can.”
Check Out SurvivorNet’s Mental Health Resource Page
Van Der Beek also spoke about the strip tease special, inspired by the 1997 comedy “The Full Monty,” to Fox News Digital, telling the news outlet, “I saw it was to raise awareness for early cancer detection and lessen the stigma for men to get checked. And I knew immediately I was going to do this.
“I neglected to inform my brain until the very last second because my brain would have just white-knuckled the entire way through.”
Understanding Colon Cancer & Van Der Beek’s Diagnosis
James Van Der Beek learned he had colorectal cancer last year after getting a colonoscopy done. He told People in his recent tell-all interview that his bowel issues led him to get checked.
“I thought maybe I needed to stop coffee. Or maybe not put cream in the coffee. But when I cut that out and it didn’t improve, I thought, ‘All right, I better get this checked out,’” he told the celebrity news outlet.
Colorectal cancer happens when polyps are not removed and become cancerous. It can take up to 10 years for a colon polyp to become cancerous, according to SurvivorNet experts.
“We know that colon cancers can be prevented when polyps are found early,” Dr. Heather Yeo, a surgical oncologist who specializes in colorectal cancers at Weill Cornell Medicine, told SurvivorNet. “Lowering the screening age helps somewhat with this, but access to care is a real problem.”
Looking for Polyps During Colonoscopy
Dr. Zuri Murrell, a colorectal cancer surgeon and Director of the Cedars-Sinai Colorectal Cancer Center, previously explained the colonoscopy procedure to SurvivorNet.
“When we see a polyp, we actually physically take the polyp out through the colonoscope,” he explained. “What does that mean? That means we basically put a wire through with a little bit of a flange at the end, and we pull the polyp out. Now, note there is no pain with that. Inside the colon, there are no pain fibers. So, there’s no pain.”
The advantage of a colonoscopy is that your doctor can remove any polyps found during the test. Many colon cancers can be caught on colonoscopy before they develop or when the polyps are small enough to be removed without surgery.
The American Gastrointestinal Association lowered the recommended initial age for a colorectal screening from 50 to 45.
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends guidelines that state colon cancer screenings should begin at 45 years old. This is in response to the increase we see in colon cancer diagnoses in younger adults.
However, many insurance companies still do not cover the cost of screenings for those under 50. In the past, the disease had predominantly been found in adults 50 years or older, but for those predisposed to getting it at a younger age, these new guidelines could help catch it earlier.
Debating Over Treatment of Colorectal Cancer
A few years back, research suggested that some colorectal cancer patients may be able to choose several years of close follow-up rather than surgery after successfully undergoing radiochemotherapy, while some doctors question whether close observation is really enough.
Dr. Heather Yeo, a colorectal surgeon at Weill Cornell Medicine and SurvivorNet medical advisor, warns, “A small percent [of colorectal cancer patients] present with incurable disease – these patients may have been cured after surgery or surgery and chemotherapy and are now incurable.”
Findings, published in The Lancet Oncology in 2021, suggest that up to 70% of rectal cancer patients might be able to avoid colostomies and other major surgeries by undergoing a multi-year period of intense observation.
RELATED: The Debate and Evidence About Watch and Wait
The period of observation, known as the “watch and wait” protocol, would regularly check these patients, who have already successfully undergone radiochemotherapy, for any potential sign of cancerous regrowth.
Additionally, the research claims that this monitoring period might be as short as one to three years, saying that, after a single year with no regrowth, the risk of rectal cancer recurring or spreading drops dramatically.
“Our results suggest that achieving a complete clinical recovery and sustaining it for one year is the most relevant protective factor in patients with rectal cancer, placing them in an excellent prognostic stage,” concluded Dr. Laura Fernandez, the study’s lead author.
Ultimately, the “watch and wait” protocol is a treatment option that those fighting colorectal cancer should discuss with their medical team. Colorectal oncologists like Dr. Yeo can help patients weigh the benefits and risks of this approach and craft the best treatment plan for them.
“This is an important conversation to have with patients. We shouldn’t give false hope, as 30% of patients do not respond to these treatments and may not have salvage as an option,” Dr. Yeo tells SurvivorNet. “Those that do are taking a risk of losing an opportunity for cure (a low risk, but one that still should be discussed).”
Building the Courage to Share
Some people battling a disease or cancer are open to sharing their experiences as much as they can, while others prefer to keep it to themselves or close loved ones. SurvivorNet experts say both approaches and everything in between, are valid.
“Patients who have just been diagnosed with cancer sometimes wonder how they are going to handle the diagnosis of the cancer in social situations,” psychiatrist Dr. Lori Plutchik explains.
Questions like “How much information should they share and with whom should they share the information?” are things Plutchik says patients take into consideration.
Dr. Plutchik explains, “There is no one right way to handle this diagnosis. People should do what feels right to them.”
A cancer journey can last months to years, which means cancer warriors may be experiencing a lot of uncertainty until they fully understand where their health stands. This uncertainty can influence when a cancer patient is ready to share their diagnosis, Dr. Plutchik further explained.
Dr. Plutchik stresses that those close to a person going through cancer should be respectful of their wishes when it comes to disclosing their diagnosis and seeking support.
Staying Positive Despite Adversity
We love how Van Der Beek has remained positive and hopeful throughout his cancer journey, which is why we’d like to point out how SurvivorNet specializes in covering the lives of people who overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Often, seeing the positive helps them maintain their resilience.
WATCH: Defining and Building Resilience
Dr. Zuri Murrell, an oncologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, previously spoke to SurvivorNet about the role of a positive outlook on survival rates, saying, “I’m pretty good at telling what kind of patient are going to still have this attitude and probably going to live the longest, even with bad, bad disease. And those are patients who, they have gratitude in life.”
Resilience is an important trait, but not the easiest to build. The ultimate goal is not to avoid tough times, but to be able to bounce back from them. And yet, when they are faced with an overwhelming, life-changing situation, how do people shift their view? How do they learn to see the problem as temporary, rather than permanent, and figure out a solution?
It’s complicated, because building resilience is more about your mental and emotional fortitude than anything else. According to the American Psychological Association, “the resources and skills associated with more positive adaptation (i.e., greater resilience) can be cultivated and practiced.” In other words, resilience is not something you’re born with, which should be encouraging. Instead, after every challenge in your life, you build more and more resilience to those hard times.
You can build resilience the way you build muscle – through patience and steady exercise of the skill. Here are some lessons taken from Fischer, Runkel, and Soller, all who have spoke with SurvivorNet in earlier interviews.
- Be willing to learn. If one way doesn’t work, find a different way. If an obstacle lands in your way, build a path around it or over it. In Resilience, one of the athletes says, “You always have to be learning. Otherwise, life gets stagnant.” The more you learn, the more you grow and growth is a sign of resilience.
- Spend time with people who inspire you. Our world is filled with people who overcome challenges, and their success can energize you to overcome your own. Think about famous people who hava faced adversity and did not give up Stephen King actually threw his manuscript, Carrie, in the trash because it had been rejected by publishers so many times. His wife encouraged him to keep sending it out, and he finally sold it in 1974 launching a massively successful career as a novelist. Take the time to read and learn about the lives of Helen Keller, Jackie Robinson, Bethany Hamilton, Nelson Mandela, and others.
- Allow yourself to grieve. Don’t push away or dismiss your frustration and sadness. Ben Fischer says that life can be filled with lots of crying, but “Those cries make us stronger.”
- Be flexible. Abandon the idea that there is only one solution or that you must stick to your original plan. The best solution or plan is the one that eventually works. You may need to change your original plan as the circumstances change.
- Lean in to your community. Your friends, colleagues, and family are invaluable, and when you’re feeling stressed or overwhelmed by a problem, their support can carry you. The Harvard Study of Adult Development is the longest study of human well-being. Many news outlets have covered its results, which show that maintaining strong, healthy relationships helped people live longer lives. Psychiatrist and author Dr. Samantha Boardman tells SurvivorNet that connecting with and contributing to the lives of other people are two of “the three wellsprings of vitality” (the third is feeling positively challenged).
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
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