Jenna Fischer revealed she was diagnosed with breast cancer last year and underwent a number of challenges, including surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation.
The actress, best known for playing Pam Beesly on The Office, marked Breast Cancer Awareness month this October by talking about her struggles and thanking the “village” that helped her though it.
Highlights
- Jenna Fischer revealed she was diagnosed with breast cancer in December last year.
- “October is breast cancer awareness month. I never thought I’d be making an announcement like this but here we are,” she wrote in a lengthy message.
- The 50-year-old actress said she was diagnosed with Stage 1 Triple Positive Breast Cancer and has since undergone surgery, chemotherapy and radiation.
- She also said it takes a "village" to fight cancer, and she was lucky to have an "amazing" one.
“October is breast cancer awareness month. I never thought I’d be making an announcement like this but here we are,” she wrote in the caption.
Jenna Fischer shared that she is now cancer-free after battling Stage 1 Triple Positive Breast Cancer
Image credits: Jenna Fischer
Image credits: The Office
The 50-year-old actress said she was diagnosed with Stage 1 Triple Positive Breast Cancer in December, 2023.
“Triple positive breast cancer is an aggressive form of breast cancer but it is also highly responsive to treatment. Had a lumpectomy to remove the tumor,” she shared.
“Luckily my cancer was caught early and it hadn’t spread to my lymp nodes or throughout the rest of my body, however, because of the aggressive nature of triple positive breast cancer it sill required chemotherapy and radiation to be sure it didn’t return,” she continued.
She marked Breast Cancer Awareness Month by candidly discussing her experience and encouraging others to get regular mammograms
Image credits: Jenna Fischer
Image credits: Jenna Fischer
The sitcom sensation underwent 12 rounds of weekly chemotherapy, followed by three weeks of radiation, She now continues to be treated with infusions of Herceptin and a daily dose of Tamoxifen.
“I lost my hair during chemotherapy but thanks to some great wigs and hats with hair (which my family affectionately called Wigats) I have been able to wait until now to reveal all that has been going on for me,” she wrote.
Diagnosed in December 2023 with an aggressive but treatable form of breast cancer, the 50-year-old actress emphasized the importance of early detection
Image credits: Jenna Fischer
Image credits: Jenna Fischer
She urged her audience to get their annual mammograms and ask their doctor to calculate their Breast Cancer Risk. She also noted that if she had waited another six months to get her diagnosis, things could have been much worse.
In her lengthy message, the actress went on to thank the people in her life for being her pillars of support throughout the past year. She not only gave a shout-out to her doctors and nurses but also to the friends and family for their kind gestures.
Jenna underwent surgery, 12 rounds of chemotherapy, and three weeks of radiation over the past few months
Image credits: Jenna Fischer
“It takes a village to fight cancer, and I have had an amazing village. Until this happened, I don’t think I really knew the generosity and kindness that could rain down from one person to another,” she said.
“Each person had their own special way of caring for us. Some people texted me every week of chemo, some took me for walks, picked up our kids from school, dropped off food, took me wig shopping, some sent prayers in the for of audio messages,” she continued. “Every gesture big or small was felt. All of it was perfect.”
After her final chemo and radiation treatments, her family celebrated by ringing a bell with her kids in their backyard while everyone threw confetti
Image credits: Jenna Fischer
Adding that they “took this journey as a family,” she mentioned that her children, aged 10 and 13, were also very much a part of it.
She also expressed her gratitude to her husband and screenwriter Lee Kirk, who was there by her side for “surgeries, chemotherapy, doctor appointments, endless googling, late night ugly cries.”
“He was there for it all,” she added.
"Don't skip your mammogram. Take it from Pam and her Pam Pams," the sitcom star said as she concluded her message
As she concluded her message, she said: “I'm happy to say that I was recently re-screened, and the treatments worked. I am cancer free. I will continue to be treated and monitored to help me stay that way.”
"Again, don’t skip your mammogram. Take it from Pam and her Pam Pams. Michael was right. Get ‘em checked ladies. And know that should you get a breast cancer diagnosis, there is a village waiting to care for you,” she concluded.