Boy Meets World star Danielle Fishel reveals incredible stroke of luck that saved her life

Danielle Fishel announced on Monday's episode of Pod Meets World that she has been diagnosed with breast cancer .

The actress , best known for playing Topanga on Boy Meets World , runs the podcast with two of her former Boy Meets World stars Rider Strong and Will Friedle.

She had told her co-hosts before recording the episode the news, and was ready to share it with the world.

"I was recently diagnosed with DCIS, which stands for ductal carcinoma in situ, which is a form of breast cancer ," she said, "It is very, very, very early. It’s technically stage zero."

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Danielle also shared how thankful she was that it was caught early and how a small stroke of luck encouraged her to go to the doctor. At first, she didn't want to tell anyone about her diagnosis but realized it could help others get tested.

"The only reason I caught this cancer when it is still stage zero is because the day I got my text message that my yearly mammogram had come up, I made the appointment," she said.

"And the fact that I am good about going to my doctor’s appointments, when truthfully, it would be so much easier with as busy as I am, to say, ‘I don’t have time for that,'" she added, "And so I want to share this because I hope that it will encourage anyone to get in there."

She told women listening: "If it’s time for your appointment, if you’ve never had an appointment before, get in there. If you have to find out that you have cancer, find out when it’s at stage zero, if possible."

Danielle also shared on the podcast episode that she was "going to be fine" and she would have surgery to remove the cancer. She shared the news with her family and her husband, Jensen Karp, who she shares two boys Adler, five, and Keaton, three.

DCIS is short for Ductal carcinoma in situ and "it's a condition that affects the cells of the milk ducts in the breast," according to John Hopkins Medicine . The milk duct lining cells become malignant (cancerous) but remain in situ. There is a small chance that DCIS could spread and become life-threatening.

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