Prior to James Van Der Beek’s death at age 48, the actor revealed the first warning sign of his colon cancer — and it’s one that did not seem alarming at the time.

The “Dawson’s Creek” actor’s wife, Kimberly Van Der Beek, confirmed his passing in a social media post on Wednesday.

Following the announcement of his colorectal cancer diagnosis in November 2024, Van Der Beek told Healthline in August that “there wasn’t any red flag or something glaring.”

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“I was healthy. I was doing the cold plunge,” he said. “I was in amazing cardiovascular shape, and I had stage 3 cancer, and I had no idea.”

The one symptom that he did experience was a change in bowel movements, which the actor chalked up to an effect of his coffee consumption.

“Before my diagnosis, I didn’t know much about colorectal cancer,” Van Der Beek said. “I didn’t even realize the screening age [had] dropped to 45; I thought it was still 50.”

He ultimately underwent a colonoscopy, which revealed that the actor had stage 3 colon cancer.

COLORECTAL CANCER MAY CAUSE THESE 4 HIDDEN WARNING SIGNS, EXPERTS SAY

Professor Eitan Friedman, M.D., Ph.D., an oncologist and founder of The Suzanne Levy-Gertner Oncogenetics Unit at the Sheba Medical Center in Israel, confirmed that changes in bowel habits are the primary red flag that should raise the suspicion of colorectal cancer.

Others include fatigue (linked to anemia), blood in stool, weight loss, loss of appetite and abdominal discomfort, as Friedman, who has not treated Van Der Beek, previously told Fox News Digital.

“I was in amazing cardiovascular shape, and I had stage 3 cancer, and I had no idea.”

Dr. Erica Barnell, M.D., Ph.D., a physician-scientist at Washington University School of Medicine — and co-founder and chief medical officer at Geneoscopy — noted that Van Der Beek’s experience of having no “glaring” signs is common.

“Many colorectal cancers develop silently, without obvious symptoms,” Barnell, who also did not treat the actor, previously told Fox News Digital. “By the time symptoms appear, the disease may already be advanced.”

Symptoms are “especially worrisome” for those 45 and older who have at least one first-degree relative with colon cancer or other GI malignancies, and those with active inflammatory bowel disease, such as ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease, added Friedman, who is also an advisory board member at SpotitEarly, a startup that offers an at-home breath test to detect early-stage cancer signals.

Early detection is key

The overall chance of an average-risk person getting colorectal cancer over a lifetime is 4% to 5%, according to Friedman.

“Colonoscopy at age 45 onwards, at five- to 10-year intervals, has been shown to lead to early detection of polyps that have the potential to become malignant, and to allow for their removal as an effective means of minimizing the risk of malignant transformation,” he said. 

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Unfortunately, Barnell noted, “screening compliance in the U.S. remains below national targets, and gaps are widest in rural, low-income and minority communities.”

To help close those gaps, she called for greater access to “accurate, noninvasive screening technologies,” along with efforts to increase public awareness.

“Most people don’t like talking about bowel habits, but paying attention to changes can save your life,” Barnell said. “Screening gives us the chance to find problems early — often before you feel sick — and that can make all the difference.”

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Fox News Digital previously reached out to Van Der Beek’s representative for comment.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) refused to consider Moderna’s application for a new flu vaccine using mRNA technology, the company announced Tuesday, a decision that could delay the introduction of a shot designed to offer stronger protection for older adults.

Moderna said it received what’s known as a “refusal-to-file” (RTF) letter from the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER), citing the lack of an “adequate and well-controlled” study with a comparator arm that “does not reflect the best-available standard of care.”

Stéphane Bancel, chief executive officer of Moderna, said the FDA’s decision did not “identify any safety or efficacy concerns with our product” and “does not further our shared goal of enhancing America’s leadership in developing innovative medicines.”

“It should not be controversial to conduct a comprehensive review of a flu vaccine submission that uses an FDA-approved vaccine as a comparator in a study that was discussed and agreed on with CBER prior to starting,” Bancel said in a statement. “We look forward to engaging with CBER to understand the path forward as quickly as possible so that America’s seniors, and those with underlying conditions, continue to have access to American-made innovations.”

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The rare decision from the FDA comes amid increased scrutiny over vaccine approvals under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has criticized mRNA vaccines and rolled back certain COVID-19 shot recommendations over the past year.

Kennedy previously removed members of the federal government’s vaccine advisory panel and appointed new members, and moved to cancel $500 million in mRNA vaccine contracts.

The FDA authorized COVID-19 vaccines for the fall for high-risk groups only. Last May, Kennedy announced the vaccines would be removed from the CDC’s routine immunization schedule for healthy children and pregnant women.

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According to Moderna, the refusal-to-file decision was based on the company’s choice of comparator in its Phase 3 trial — a licensed standard-dose seasonal flu vaccine — which the FDA said did not reflect the “best-available standard of care.”

Moderna said the decision contradicts prior written communications from the FDA, including 2024 guidance stating a standard-dose comparator would be acceptable, though a higher-dose vaccine was recommended for participants over 65.

Moderna said the FDA “did not raise any objections or clinical hold comments about the adequacy of the Phase 3 trial after the submission of the protocol in April 2024 or at any time before the initiation of the study in September 2024.”

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In August 2025, following completion of the Phase 3 efficacy trial, Moderna said it held a pre-submission meeting with CBER, which requested that supportive analyses on the comparator be included in the submission and indicated the data would be a “significant issue during review of your BLA.”

Moderna said it provided the additional analyses requested by CBER in its submission, noting that “at no time in the pre-submission written feedback or meeting did CBER indicate that it would refuse to review the file.”

The company requested a Type A meeting with CBER to understand the basis for the RTF letter, adding that regulatory reviews are continuing in the European Union, Canada and Australia.

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Fox News has reached out to the Department of Health and Human Services for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Alex Miller and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

A common medication for diabetes may slow down age-related vision loss, according to new research.

People with diabetes who were over the age of 55 and taking metformin — a prescription drug most commonly used to treat type 2 diabetes — were 37% less likely to develop intermediate age-related macular degeneration (AMD) over five years compared to those not taking it.

Researchers at the University of Liverpool used eye pictures from 2,000 people who received routine diabetic eye disease screenings over the course of five years.

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Next, they assessed whether AMD was present in the photos and how severe each case was, before comparing the differences between people taking metformin and those who did not take it, according to a press release.

They also adjusted for factors that could potentially skew the results, such as age, sex and how long they’d had diabetes.

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“Most people who suffer from AMD have no treatment, so this is a great breakthrough in our search for new treatments,” said Nick Bear, an ophthalmologist at the University of Liverpool in the U.K., who led the research.

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“What we need to do now is test metformin as a treatment for AMD in a clinical trial. Metformin has the potential to save many people’s sight,” he added.

While the results are promising, researchers noted that the study was observational, meaning it shows a link between the drug and eye health, but does not prove metformin was the direct cause of the improvement.

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The study also focused only on people with diabetes. It is unclear whether the drug would have the same effect on people without the condition.

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Additionally, the researchers did not have data on the specific doses of metformin patients took or how strictly they followed their prescriptions.

Metformin is an off-patent, low-cost drug already widely used to manage blood sugar, according to Mayo Clinic.

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Scientists believe its anti-inflammatory and anti-aging properties may help protect the retina.

Mayo Clinic says metformin is generally safe, but can cause digestive side effects and vitamin B12 deficiency in some patients.