James Van Der Beek Gets Emotional About Cancer Battle on ‘Today’ Show

James Van Der Beek couldn’t help but get emotional as he shared an update on his cancer diagnosis in a new sit-down with the TODAY show’s Craig Melvin.

After being diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer in 2023, the Dawson’s Creek star called himself “really fortunate in an unfortunate diagnosis” during the interview, which aired Friday.

“It’s been a longer journey than I ever thought it would be. It’s required more of me — more patience, more discipline. More strength than I knew I had. I knew I was strong, I didn’t know I was this strong,” the 48-year-old actor, who shared his diagnosis with the public in November 2024, confessed.

While the Dancing With the Stars alum declined to share the specific treatments he’s undergone for his cancer, he did say he has been “trying a bunch of stuff” and that his treatment is ongoing.

Van Der Beek also took Melvin back to the moment he was diagnosed with colorectal cancer following a colonoscopy he underwent after noticing a change in his bowel habits and feeling like something was off.

“I went into shock,” he recalled. “But you know, one of the things I was really lucky about was as soon as I heard the news, I thought, ‘This is gonna be the best thing to ever happen to me.’ … I had this little voice in my head that said, ‘You’re gonna make changes in your life that you would never, ever make if you didn’t have this extreme of a diagnosis, and it’s gonna add healthy, happy years to your life.’”

The Varsity Blues actor said he’s learned a lot from fighting cancer, including what it really means to be in the moment. “I don’t think I knew what it was to slow down before … to really look at everything I eat, everything I put in my body,” he admitted. “Really, the biggest change I’d say would be this journey of self-love. What I realized was, I’m still worthy of love. My own love, God’s love.”

Van Der Beek’s faith has become very important to him during his cancer battle. “Before cancer, God was something I tried to fit into my life as much as possible,” he shared. “After cancer, I feel like a connection to God, whatever that is, is kind of the whole point of this exercise on this planet. …To be good stewards of our relationships with other people, and in doing so, connecting to whatever that force of God’s love is.”