Jenna Fischer has a devoted community of fans, both from the enduringly popular show “The Office” and her more recent project, a rewatch podcast called “Office Ladies.” However, it wasn’t until Fischer, 51, was diagnosed with stage 1 triple-positive breast cancer that she realized the importance and impact of community in her private life.
“It was one of those things where it was like, ‘in case of emergency, break glass,’” Fischer said, “and I broke the glass, and my community showed up. They carried me and my family through this, and I let myself be cared for. That was not something that I had ever really experienced before, and it really opened my eyes to the meaning of life. That’s kind of what we’re here for — to be someone’s ‘in case of emergency,’ if we can.”
Since announcing her diagnosis and remission news in an Instagram post in October 2024, and then winding down most of her treatment in early 2025, Fischer has built yet another community: women like herself who are starting or are in the middle of their cancer journey.
She has also used her platform to raise awareness for cancer and advocate for patients who, like her, chose to work during their treatment.
Being well during a cancer journey
When Fischer was diagnosed with cancer, her personal health became the center of her life, as is true for many people who are diagnosed with a serious illness. However, Fischer took her focus on health a step further by complementing conventional cancer treatments with diet and lifestyle changes for better results.
For example, for the 12 weeks Fischer underwent chemotherapy, she took walks, at whatever length she could, in the fresh air. Her oncologist recommended them to help reduce chemo side effects, and they helped.
“Sometimes, those walks were doing a circle in my backyard,” Fischer said. “Sometimes, they were a walk around my neighborhood with my family. One time, we did a 3-mile hike.”
During the three weeks of radiation Fischer completed, she stretched to help with recovery. Now, Fischer is on an oral hormonal therapy, and research shows weightlifting can be an effective way to manage its side effects — a tactic that’s working for Fischer.
Nutritionally, one of the things Fischer did was sip bone broth in the days following chemo — a tip she received from another cancer survivor who is a chef.
Those extra measures aren’t covered by insurance, and it requires sweat equity on Fischer’s part, she noted. “When I talk to other women, this is the stuff I talk to them about, because their doctors can talk to them about their treatment plan, but this is sort of the survival plan. This is how we survive and thrive during treatment.”
Existing as more than just a cancer patient
Initially, Fischer didn’t go public with her diagnosis. She feared doing so would have discouraged people from hiring her or led them to believe she couldn’t work. In reality, Fischer could work — she even shot a commercial during her third week of chemo.
“That’s not because I’m some extraordinary person,” she said. “It’s just that I could do more than I thought I could — and that I think most people think you can.”
She added, “Now listen, there are days that hit hard, and I just prayed that I wasn’t going to have a hard day on the days I had signed up to do this commercial, and I tried to be strategic and place those days at the end of my recovery week, because those were generally my best days.”
Ultimately, for Fischer, working helped her stay grounded. As a business owner, she said she has more flexibility than most people with her hours. To increase awareness of cancer patients’ potential, she decided to partner with Publicis on its “Working With Cancer” campaign to encourage companies whose employees have cancer to help them continue working if they wish.
Becoming a cancer survivor
Now that Fischer is cancer-free, she still asks the question, “Is this the healthiest choice for me?” regularly. She recognizes that stress reduction is important for effective cancer treatment, but also for cancer recovery.
“Having a stress-filled work life is not the best thing for me as a cancer patient or cancer survivor,” Fischer said, “so I make sure I’m not overloading myself or over-committing to things, and I make sure that I treat my fitness and nutrition routines like doctor’s appointments as opposed to something that I hope happens.”
Fischer also continues to eat healthy whole foods and to lift weights — the latter being a habit she credits with being able to hoist suitcases into overhead bins on a recent flight with her children. “I didn’t need any help at all, and I was like, ‘Oh I definitely would have been asking a kind stranger to help me with my bag three years ago.’”
For Fischer, the term “cancer survivor” is still a relatively new one. In February 2025, she got her treatment port removed, and she’s adjusting to a daily routine that doesn’t involve active treatment, except for the hormonal therapy.
“There have been silver linings to this whole experience,” Fischer said. “We’ve grown closer as a family. And I don’t take anything for granted anymore. Being able to get up in the mornings and get my kids off to school means so much to all of us now.”
The continual power of community
Community has helped Fischer from the beginning, and it still does even after treatment.
During her own journey, other women with breast cancer mentored Fischer, and Fischer has gone on to mentor other women who were recently diagnosed.
“It helps make the whole experience useful to others, and it just gives me the strength to keep plugging away at my own recovery,” Fischer said. “Also, if I can get one person to make that mammogram appointment, colonoscopy appointment, or their skin check appointment that they’ve been putting off, and they maybe get their diagnosis earlier or they get that clean bill of health, that means so much to me, because it was seeing other women post about their mammograms that made me realize, ‘Oh, my God, that’s right. I have to do that appointment.’”
Fischer feels driven to share her story because hearing others’ during her journey helped her. “The more stories I heard or that I read of people who had survived cancer and were thriving, the less scared I felt,” Fischer said, “and so I want to be that for other people, if I can.”
