Beloved The Office actor Jenna Fischer is using her platform to spread awareness and remind people of the importance of getting a mammogram following her breast cancer diagnosis.
Fischer, who is famous for portraying Pam Beesly on the long-running NBC workplace sitcom, opened up about her cancer journey with TODAY's Hoda Kotb in the hopes of providing comfort to those who are fighting cancer and letting them know they are not alone.
On October 8, Fischer commemorated National Breast Cancer Awareness Month with an Instagram post, revealing:
"I never thought I’d be making an announcement like this but here we are."
"Last December, I was diagnosed with Stage 1 Triple Positive Breast Cancer. After completing surgery, chemotherapy and radiation I am now cancer free."
Fischer told Kotb about how her life quickly changed upon learning of her diagnosis on December 1, 2023, after the initial mammogram test results were inconclusive.
Fischer recalled her conversation with the doctor after going in for the routine mammogram, which she kept putting off.
“Three weeks later, they said, ‘Oh, your mammogram was fine. There were a few spots that were difficult to see. You have very dense tissue. We would recommend that you do another mammogram and maybe follow up with a breast ultrasound.'"
“I was like, ‘This is the appointment that won’t end," she laughed.
After the ultrasound, however, Fischer was told that "they found something," which led to her getting a biopsy.
"That's when I got nervous," she said.
Fischer was apprised of the bad news during a hike when she checked the patient portal for results from the biopsy.
“I checked the portal on the hike, and that’s when I saw words like ‘invasive,’ ‘ductal,’ ‘carcinoma,’ ‘malignant,’” she said.
“And I was like, ‘Those words sound like cancer words.’”
When the doctor confirmed it was cancer, Fischer was in shock.
She recalled:
“I think the word that really got me was when we found out that I was triple-positive and my oncologist said chemotherapy. That was when I really lost it."
Fischer explained the news and the treatment process to her kids in a way that wouldn't be alarming.
“They’re 10 and they’re 13, and they were going to be living in the house while I went through this. They’re going to see it."
"And the biggest thing that I wanted them to know was that any ways that I seemed sick during this process were side effects of treatments. They weren’t cancer making me sick."
“That distinction, I think, really put them at ease. And then we just kind of did it together. And they were amazing.”
The actor went through chemotherapy, a lumpectomy, and radiation, and her latest screenings revealed she is now cancer-free.
You can watch Fischer's powerful interview below:
- YouTubeyoutu.be
Fans thanked Fischer for sharing her story, and gave her their well-wishes.
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For the next year, Fischer said she would be taking tamoxifen—a monoclonal antibody used to treat breast cancer—and Herceptin—a selective estrogen receptor modulator to prevent breast cancer.
She said that two of her saving graces were humor and maintaining a sense of normalcy during the scary period of fighting for her life.
“Humor helped through all of this. And working helped. And staying in the world helped."
“My oncology nurse, Ron, was an amazing man. ... When I started chemotherapy, he said to me, ‘Listen, I want you to get up every day, and I want you to walk. Every day.’”
“‘I want you to drink a ton of water. Walking and water. That’s what I want you to do. And I want you to take care of those kids."
"The women who get up and at it are the women who do better in my experience.’”
@msjennafischer/Instagram
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The Blades of Glory actor said the experience has dramatically changed her mindset about life.
“I liked that people were annoyed if I was late with an email,” she said. “I liked being regarded as my old self, so to speak.”
“All of the most important things became so clear so quickly. And the cool thing is that that focus never leaves."
"So I will get to carry that with me now. ... I’ll say I find the world to be such a beautiful place in all of its quirkiness.”
Even the things that used to annoy her in the past suddenly became "charming" occurrences to her.
She explained:
“Like, you know, just traffic. ‘Oh, look at you, cute traffic. Look at all the people just goin’ places."
“How great that I get to sit in traffic. How cool.”
@msjennafischer/Instagram
@msjennafischer/Instagram
@msjennafischer/Instagram
Fischer concluded with an urgent reminder to all women.
“Please don’t skip your mammogram appointment. Please get all the extra screenings that the doctor wants you to get," she said and credited her survival to earlier checkups.
“If I had waited six more months, it could have been much worse. It could have spread. It was a very aggressive form of cancer."
“I’m really lucky that my cancer had not spread into my lymph nodes. It hadn’t spread anywhere else in my body.”
“My tumor was still very small, too small to feel."
“That’s the thing. A self-exam would not have (caught the cancer). It really was that routine mammogram that started all of this. And I’m so grateful that I went to that appointment.”
Fischer is currently the co-host of the podcast Office Ladies with her best friend and The Office co-star Angela Kinsey, who "protected" and "advocated" for Fischer during their podcast recordings.
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