Danielle Fishel Undergoes Surgery for Breast Cancer, TikTok Star Dies of Rare Liver Cancer and More

October 18, 2024
Ashley Chan

Ashley Chan, assistant editor for CURE®, has been with MJH Life Sciences since June 2023. She graduated with a B.A. in Communication Studies from Rowan University. Outside of work, Ashley enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading new novels by Asian American authors, and working on the manuscript of her New Adult novel.

From “Boy Meets World” actress Danielle Fishel discussing her breast cancer surgery to a young TikTok star dying from a rare liver cancer, here’s what’s happening in the cancer space this week.

“Boy Meets World” Star Danielle Fishel discussed treatment for breast cancer.

Actress Danielle Fishel, well-known for her role as Topanga Lawrence on “Boy Meets World,” recently opened up about her surgery for stage 0 breast cancer.

The star revealed in August that she received a diagnosis of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), a stage 0 breast cancer. Since then, she has undergone two lumpectomies (surgical procedures to remove the tumor and abnormal tissue), she told TODAY.

“There is no evidence of disease, so the surgery was successful and got the cancer out of my body,” Fishel told the news platform. “But they call cancer a journey for a reason. It’s not just walk in and have even one procedure and then you’re done.”

Next in Fishel’s journey, she will start receiving oral hormone therapy and may receive radiation, she told TODAY.

TikTok star died at 27 of a rare liver cancer.

Rachel Yaffe, an influencer on TikTok, died on Oct. 11 at the age of 27 of stage 4 fibrolamellar hepatocellular carcinoma, a rare form of liver cancer.

Yaffe received her diagnosis at 20 years old and had documented her cancer experience on TikTok and Instagram.

In the influencer’s last video on TikTok, she discussed her life updates and priorities moving forward.

“It's been a little bit difficult both physically and mentally, but I'm working on really just focusing on the small things that bring me joy, and really, really prioritizing my mental health as well,” she said in the video.

Bruce Springsteen provided an update on his wife’s multiple myeloma.

Bruce Springsteen recently opened up about his wife and bandmate, Patti Scialfa, and her experience with multiple myeloma, a type of cancer that affects the bone and bone marrow.

In September, she announced that she would be unable to perform live concerts with Springsteen’s band, the E Street Band, because the disease affected her immune system.

“She’s doing good,” Springsteen said of Scialfa during the ABC News special “Bruce Springsteen: Backstage and Backstreets,” airing Oct. 20. “We caught it early, which was important.”

“She hadn’t played in the band in a long time, and people, I don’t think, knew why,” he explained. “[They wondered,] ‘Where’s Patti?’”

Grandmother who accidentally invited a stranger to Thanksgiving diagnosed with cancer.

Wanda Dench, a grandma who went viral for accidentally texting a stranger about Thanksgiving plans, received a diagnosis of breast cancer.

Jamal Hinton, the invited “stranger” who has celebrated Thanksgiving with Dench since 2016, provided Dench’s breast cancer update on his X account, formerly known as Twitter.

"Earlier this year, I came down with bronchitis and had a CT scan to check out my lungs," Dench wrote in Hinton's post on X. "That’s when a mass in my breast was detected and they suggested I get a mammogram and that verified I had breast cancer."

In the post, she explained that her family does not have a history of cancer and that her mammograms historically were negative. After a mammogram two years ago when Dench was 65, she believed it would be her last, she wrote.

“I was wrong. After the shock wore off, I met with the most wonderful people at the breast cancer center,” she said on X. “Everyone was so kind, supportive and knowledgeable.”

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