Danielle Fishel has revealed that she has been diagnosed with breast cancer.
The actress, 43, rose to fame for playing Topanga Lawrence on the beloved '90s sitcom Boy Meets World, which aired for seven years between 1993 and 2000.
She later reprised her role in a reboot of the show for Disney+ titled Girl Meets World that ran between 2014 to 2017.
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On the latest episode of her podcast Pod Meets World, that she co-hosts with her former co-stars Will Friedle and Rider Strong (who played Eric Matthews and Shawn Hunter on the sitcom respectively), Fishel gave an update on her health and revealed that she has recently received a cancer diagnosis.
"I was recently diagnosed with DCIS, which stands for ductal carcinoma in situ, which is a form of breast cancer," she said at the start of the podcast episode.
"It is very, very, very early. It's technically stage zero."
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"I'm going to be fine. I'm having surgery to remove it," she added.
"I'm going to be on some follow-up treatment. I've had to make a lot of decisions over the last couple of days."
Fishel went on to explain that she was initially apprehensive about sharing her diagnosis, but ultimately decided to speak out on it to hopefully encourage others to take the right cautionary decisions with their own health.
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"The only reason I caught this cancer when it is still stage zero is because the day I got my text message that my yearly mammogram had come up, I made the appointment," she said, urging everyone to make time to get in for their mammograms.
According to the American Cancer Society, ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is typically considered to be the stage 0 of breast cancer and is essentially when cancer cells are still contained in ducts and have not spread to nearby tissue.
They explain: "About 1 in 5 new breast cancers will be ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). Nearly all women with this early stage of breast cancer can be cured."
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Most treatment usually includes either a breast-conserving surgery (BCS) or a simple mastectomy, with radiation usually being given after BCS.
Getting a mammography, or a breast cancer screening, is usually the best way to catch the cells early on.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the American Cancer Society on 1-800-227-2345 or via their live chat feature, available 24/7 every day of the year.
Yasmeen Hamadeh