‘The Office’ star Jenna Fischer, 50, reveals health diagnosis, details gruelling treatment

The Office star Jenna Fischer, 50, has gone public with her “gruelling” private battle after receiving devastating health news last year.

The Office star Jenna Fischer has for the first time revealed her private gruelling health battle over the past year.

In an Instagram post Tuesday, the US actress, 50, announced to her followers that she was diagnosed with stage 1 triple-positive breast cancer in December 2023.

Fischer — who “never thought” she’d be “making an announcement like this” — said she was inspired to share her story during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which is October.

“I wanted a photo of myself in my patchy pixie looking happy and healthy to go along with this news,” she explained of the accompanying picture, which showed her smiling while holding a coffee mug.

“A big thank you to Angela Kinsey’s husband Josh Snyder for taking this photo,” she added of her “Office” co-star-turned-best friend.

“It’s just one example of the care they showed me during this journey.”

Jenna Fischer played Pam Beesly on The Office. Picture: NBC/Mitchell Haaseth

Fischer has gone public with her breast cancer diagnosis, sharing this photo to Instagram.

Fischer — who shares son Weston, 13, and daughter Harper, 10, with husband Lee Kirk — went on to detail the gruelling treatment she endured.

“Back in October of 2023 I posted a photo of myself on Instagram preparing for my routine mammogram with a joking reminder to ‘take care of your ticking time bags’ a la Michael Scott,” Fischer explained, noting that the mammogram’s inconclusive results led to a breast ultrasound and then a biopsy, which ultimately led to the diagnosis.

While triple-positive breast cancer “is an aggressive form of breast cancer,” Fischer pointed out that “it is also highly responsive to treatment.”

She underwent a lumpectomy in January, during which the tumor was removed. Though her “cancer was caught early and it hadn’t spread into [her] lymph nodes or throughout the rest of [her] body, the aggressive nature of the cancer “still required chemotherapy and radiation to be sure it didn’t return.”

Fischer starred alongside John Krasinski in The Office. Picture: Chris Haston/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

The actress said she began 12 rounds of chemo in February, followed by three weeks of radiation in June.

“I lost my hair during chemotherapy but thanks to some great wigs and hats with hair (which my family affectionately called Wigats) I have been able to wait until now to reveal all that has been going on for me,” Fisher shared.

“And while I continue to be treated with infusions of Herceptin and a daily dose of Tamoxifen,” she added, “I’m happy to say I’m feeling great.”

“After completing surgery, chemotherapy and radiation I am now cancer free,” she made sure to note.

Fischer shared a celebratory photo with her family, adding she was “now cancer free.”

Fisher went on to reveal her reasons for going public with her battle, citing that she’s “ready to ditch the wigs.”

More importantly, however, she emphasised the importance of annual mammograms, explaining, “My tumor was so small it could not be felt on a physical exam. If I had waited six months longer, things could have been much worse. It could have spread.”

Fischer continued, “As anyone who has had a cancer diagnosis knows, your life changes immediately. It becomes all about doctor appointments, test results, treatments and recovering from treatments. Suddenly everything in your life is geared around one thing: fighting cancer.”

She credited her “amazing village,” including her medical team, family and friends.

Fischer gave her friend Angela Kinsey — with whom she co-hosts the Office Ladies podcast — a special shout-out.

Fischer gave a special shout out to her The Office co-star Angela Kinsey.

Fischer shot to fame on America’s version of The Office. Picture: NBC/Mitchell Haaseth

“Thankfully I’ve been able to keep working during treatments. This was all because I work with my best friend Angela Kinsey who protected me and advocated for me,” Fischer penned, adding that Kinsey, 53, was at one point “the only person in [her] workspace who knew.”

“When I lost my hair,” Fischer explained, “she wore hats to our work meetings so I wouldn’t be the only one. When I needed a break, we took one.”

The mother of two made sure to say her “kids are great” and that they “took this journey as a family.”

This story originally appeared on New York Post and was reproduced with permission

Originally published as ‘The Office’ star Jenna Fischer, 50, reveals health diagnosis, details gruelling treatment