In August of 2024, Danielle Fishel made the bold decision to go public with her breast cancer diagnosis after stumbling upon the results of Aflac’s Wellness Matters Survey. It found that 84% of millennials put off routine health screenings. Danielle opened up to Mom.com about partnering with Aflac to encourage others to get those wellness checks. She knows firsthand that it might just save your life.
Most people know Danielle as Topanga Lawrence from the hit ABC teen comedy Boy Meets World. She later reprised the role on the Disney Channel spinoff Girl Meets World. Fans who grew up with the character are now hitting the ages where mammograms, pap spears, and colonoscopies are recommended. She knows that by speaking out about preventive care, she could make a real difference.
The dreaded "C" word
Danielle was diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ with micro invasion. This is a fancy way of saying that the abnormal cells were found in the breast duct and that they may have invaded elsewhere. She was told her cancer was high grade which means it was aggressive. Thankfully, they caught it at stage 0, which meant it was highly treatable.
How she got her diagnosis:
Danielle’s cancer was found through a routine mammogram — a procedure she almost put it off when she got the text reminder. She remembers thinking: “I’m so busy. I’ve got all these things, these different jobs. I have a five-year-old. I have a three-year-old. I have a husband.” Thankfully, she didn’t let her hectic life prevent her from taking care of herself. She made the appointment that day. Thank goodness she did because the technicians found something suspicious.
More from Mom: I Wasn’t Cancer’s Exception — So Please Do Those Annual Screenings
Because Danielle’s mammogram results were abnormal, she got a biopsy. It took two weeks for the first available appointment. Three days later, she got the call that she had breast cancer.
“The hardest part of the diagnosis was all the unknowns after,” Danielle explained. “Understanding all the different treatment options you have in front of you and needing to make appointments with doctors and researching and the time between you making a plan. The time between being diagnosed and actually getting started on your plan is the hardest part of a cancer journey in my experience.”
Danielle's diagnosis was hard for her family.
When Danielle first got the horrible news, her thoughts immediately went to her husband, Jensen Karp. “Both my husband’s parents passed from cancer and his mom just passed away in 2022. So it’s a recent thing,” Danielle explained. “I was very nervous about telling him, ’cause I knew, he felt very confident that I was not going to have cancer and this was gonna feel like a gut punch to him.”
Jensen and Danielle share two sons, Adler and Keaton. Because of their young age and experience with losing their grandma, the couple decided to not use the “C” word.
“We chose not to tell the kids that I had cancer because they knew that their grandmother had died from cancer,” Danielle explained. “I didn’t want them to think that it meant I was going to die. I told them that I had a boo boo and I needed to go to the hospital. I was gonna have surgery and they were gonna take my boo boo out of me. They were gonna have to be gentle with me for a couple of weeks and they were really good about it.”
Because there were no genetic factors with her cancer, Danielle opted for a lumpectomy. She went under the knife in August. The doctors were not able to get a clear margin the first time around so she had a revision surgery in September. She believes the surgical part of her cancer journey is behind her. She is now considering radiation and hormone blockers because her cancer was estrogen positive.
Further treatment may be necessary.
Danielle already knows how she will handle telling her kids about radiation if she ends up having it. “From what I’ve heard, the biggest side effect is exhaustion,” she explained. “One of our family values is staying on top of our health screenings. One of our other family values is honesty. I am really honest with my kids when I’m not feeling my best I would tell them I haven’t been feeling well, I’m getting treatment for it, but part of that treatment is that I’m gonna be really tired. So if you see me laying on the couch or if I can’t pick you up from school, that’s why.”
“I think it’s so important for them to see their parents caring for themselves because it will encourage them to care for themselves,” she continued. “And that’s a message I really want to pass on.” Danielle values taking care of one’s mental and physical health and creates a safe space to talk about it in her family.
She's using her fame for good.
Danielle has also opened up the conversation beyond her immediate kin. “I don’t consider myself to be an influencer,” she stated. “However, I knew that if you grew up watching me on tv, you are probably a millennial like I am. And if I’m supposed to be having these wellness screenings, then you are also supposed to be having these wellness screenings. And if I could have found out that I have cancer, then you could also find out that you have cancer. And knowing how many people put off their annual exams made me say, ‘I have the ability to do something so positive with this news.’”
This has helped her cope through this difficult time. It’s been a silver lining in her cancer journey.
Danielle urges others to follow her example. “Because of my preventative care, I found out I had cancer when it was stage zero,” she stated. “If you have to hear you have cancer, find out you have it when you’re stage zero. And the only way I did that is because I was good about my annual checkups.”
Consider Danielle a friend who only wants the best for you.
Danielle wants you to prioritize preventative care. She’s not afraid to nag you about it either. “One of the things that I loved from the Aflac Wellness Survey is that three out of four people say they actually love it and appreciate it when a family member encourages them to have their exams. It makes a difference. They are more likely to make the appointment when they’ve been gently nudged by a friend or family member. If your friends or family aren’t doing it for you, consider me that friend or family member who’s nudging you toward going for your screening,” she concluded.
