James Van Der Beek addresses concerns over his appearance

James Van Der Beek has responded to fans' concerns about his gaunt appearance during a recent video message.

The Dawson's Creek star, who was diagnosed with stage three colorectal cancer in 2023, has spoken out after fans expressed concern following his appearance in a pre-recorded message shown during a Dawson's Creek reunion event in September.

Van Der Beek was unable to attend the reunion in person due to a stomach virus.

During an interview with the Today show's Craig Melvin on Friday, the broadcaster noted that "a lot of folks were worried" after watching the clip.

Van Der Beek, 48, clarified that his weight loss was caused by the stomach virus rather than a result of his cancer.

"I'd lost so much weight because of the stomach virus, yeah," he said. "No, it was not cancer-related. Although with cancer everything's like, 'Why don't we super-size that stomach virus?'"

Elsewhere in the interview, Van Der Beek opened up about his cancer battle, sharing that he feels "a little bit better every month".

"It's required more of me - more patience, more discipline," he told Melvin of the disease. "More strength than I knew I had. I knew I was strong, I didn't know I was this strong."

Van Der Beek also spoke candidly about the moment he received his diagnosis in 2023, admitting that he initially "went into shock" before experiencing a profound shift in perspective.

"But you know, one of the things I was really lucky about was as soon as I heard the news, I thought, 'This is gonna be the best thing to ever happen to me,'" he shared. "I had this little voice in my head that said, 'You're gonna make changes in your life that you would never, ever make if you didn't have this extreme of a diagnosis, and it's gonna add healthy, happy years to your life.'"