Topanga Actress from Boy Meets World Shares Breast Cancer Diagnosis

Actress Danielle Fishel has been diagnosed with breast cancer. The 43-year-old star of Girl Meets World announced her diagnosis on her Pod Meets World podcast posted on Monday. Fishel stressed that, thanks to routine cancer screening, her form of cancer was caught “very very very early,” with a number of options for treatment, according to a report by Variety:

I was recently diagnosed with DCIS, which stands for Ductal carcinoma in situ, which is a form of breast cancer […] It’s very very early, it’s technically stage zero […] They found it so early that I’m going to be fine.

She did confirm that she will have surgery to remove the cancerous growth, but assured listeners and fans that the early detection provided the strong possibility for a full recovery. Her recent announcement is a sobering jolt of reality for her many fans who have grown up with her. In the 1990s, Fishel became a teen superstar and an icon of the decade with her role as Topanga on the ABC sitcom Boy Meets World.

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Fishel went on to explain that she is currently consulting with doctors, oncologists, radiation specialists, and hormone therapists and making decisions with her family. She had considered keeping her diagnosis news secret, but decided to go public after reading the works of author Glennon Doyle, who says women should help each other through tough times. She is hoping her story will help others going through breast cancer, and encourage women to take scheduled screenings.

”
I want to share this because I hope that it will encourage anyone to get in there
. If it’s time for your appointment, if you’ve never had an appointment before, get in there. If you have to find out that you have cancer, find out when it’s at stage zero, if possible.”

Friends and Fans React to Danielle Fishel’s Diagnosis

Fishel co-hosts the Pod Meets World podcast with her former Boy Meets World co-stars Rider Strong and Will Friedle, who played Shawn and Eric on the show, respectively. Freidle addressed her diagnosis during the podcast, telling her, “We love you, and you know that we’ve got you. Whatever you need, we’re here. You are going to be fine, and you might have some sucky days coming up, but we’re here for you.”

Fans on social media expressed their concern, and offered prayers and love. Many noted that they grew up with Fishel on television, and sympathized.

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The Arizona native started her acting career with a guest-starring stint on Full House in 1992, and was cast in her breakthrough role of Topanga the following year. Following the end of Boy Meets World, she starred in the films Longshot, Dorm Daze, and Boiling Pot. She reprised the role of Topanga in The Disney Channel’s Girl Meets World, which ran for three seasons from 2014 to 2017. Fishel is currently working behind the camera, having recently directed episodes of Lopez vs. Lopez, The Villains of Valley View, and Raven’s Home. She has been married to writer and producer Jensen Karp since 2018, and they have two children together. We wish her the best.

Episodes of
Girl Meets World
are currently streaming on Disney+.

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