Dawson’s Creek star James Van Der Beek opens up about colorectal cancer battle

James Van Der Beek revealed he had been diagnosed with colorectal cancer in November 2024. Photo / Getty Images

James Van Der Beek says he has had the “hardest year of my life” since his cancer diagnosis.

Last year, the Dawson’s Creek star, 48, went public with his health crisis after being diagnosed with colorectal cancer and father-of-six Van Der Beek admitted it has taken a toll on his whole family, particularly when he “was away for treatment”.

He said on Instagram: “I had to come nose to nose with death. And all those definitions that I cared so deeply about were stripped from me.

“I could no longer be a husband who was helpful to my wife. I could no longer be a father who could pick up his kids and put them to bed and be there for them. I could not be a provider because I wasn’t working. I couldn’t even be a steward of the land because at times I was too weak to prune all the trees during the window that you’re supposed to prune them.”

Van Der Beek has six children — Olivia, 14, Joshua, 13, Annabel, 11, Emilia, 8, Gwendolyn, 6, and Jeremiah, 2, with his wife Kimberly, who he married in August 2010.

Van Der Beek went on to share that after a journey of self-discovery and meditation, he saw that “I am worthy of God’s love, simply because I exist. And if I’m worthy of God’s love, shouldn’t I also be worthy of my own?”

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Van Der Beek previously admitted he was a “sobbing, terrified mess” following his cancer diagnosis.

In an interview on Good Morning America, Van Der Beek explained: “Physically, I’m great. I’m feeling really good. Emotionally, you know, it’s a lot. It’s really a ride ...

“I was honestly in shock [after the diagnosis] … I had a whole agenda for what I thought my year would be and what I thought my priorities would be … and the reality that all of that was going to change and take a different trajectory - it felt like a nightmare honestly at first.”

Van Der Beek went on to insist he was thankful his cancer was spotted because he now has a good chance at making a recovery.

He added: “I’m going to make changes that I never would have made otherwise, that I’m gonna look back on 30 years and say: ‘Thank God this happened’.

“So what can I do right now in order to make that the case?And that’s how it was about 90% of the time. I would say that about 10% of the time I was a sobbing, terrified mess.”