The actor, who rose to fame after being cast on the drama, says it was jarring to go from total unknown to teen idol — and he still gets uncomfortable today

"I’ve been privately dealing with this diagnosis and have been taking steps to resolve it," James Van Der Beek said.

Mr. Van Der Beek, who played Dawson Leery in the ’90s drama, told People Magazine that he was being treated for colorectal cancer.

He didn’t beat around the bush. “It is cancer,” James Van Der Beek shared with his 1.5 million Instagram followers on 4. “Each year, approximately 2 [million] people around the world receive this diagnosis.

Actor James Van Der Beek, 47, revealed he was diagnosed with colorectal cancer. “I’ve been dealing with this pretty much in secret for a while,” he said. He detailed his symptoms and diagnosis. In August of last year,