The Bachelorette star Katie Thurston revealed on Monday that both she and her mother are now battling breast cancer.
The 35-year-old former reality TV star shared the news that her mother had been diagnosed with the disease on Instagram with a throwback photo of the two from her childhood.
‘My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer a few weeks ago. But it wasn’t her doctors who discovered it,’ Thurston began a series of captions on the same photo.
Thurston — who pushed back on a hoax claiming she had died last year — went on to reveal that doctors had initially declined to do further testing on her mother after an inconclusive mammogram result, and it was only by advocating herself that her mother was properly diagnosed.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Thurston for additional comment.
‘Life update: my mom has #breastcancer. I flew to Seattle this weekend to be with her at her first appointment,’ Thurston captioned the post. ‘I want to make sure she is getting proper care and information. I hate that we have to be our biggest advocate but also, it’s what will save our life.’
The Bachelorette star Katie Thurston revealed on Monday that her mother has been diagnosed with breast cancer nearly a year after her own diagnosis for the same disease
Thurston, 35, said it was her mother’s own advocacy — which she urged on — that helped her get the necessary tests to confirm that she had cancer; pictured in May in NYC
Thurston went on to explain that ‘Dense breasts need more than a mammogram to screen for cancer and yet somehow my mom had never been referred for further imaging.
She noted that her mother would be ‘getting more answers today,’ but Thurston declared, ‘I believe our own advocacy allowed us to catch this early.’
The social media star continued in the comment section, adding, ‘If you have [a] family history of breast cancer or dense breasts – please request further imaging such as a breast ultrasound or breast MRI.’
In her individual photo captions, Thurston explained that her mother’s mammogram from December came back with results that ‘said “negative” and “probably benign.”
However, her mother’s doctors ‘also notated [sic] her dense breasts but didn’t recommend further imaging.’
Despite the potential to have failed to detect cancer due to her dense breast tissue, Thurston said her mother’s doctors ‘told her to come back in a year for her annual mammogram.’
‘They never suggested a breast ultrasound,’ she added.
Thurston said she urged her mother to ask for a breast ultrasound, explaining that ‘Ultrasounds can find cancer hidden within dense breasts.’
Thurston said her mother’s mammogram was ‘normal,’ but doctors didn’t recommend further scans despite her having dense breast tissue. But when her mother asked for additional testing despite her doctors’ recommendations, her cancer was discovered
Thurston starred on season 17 of The Bachelorette in 2021, which ended with her getting engaged to Blake Moynes, though they broke up just two months later in October 2021
Thurston’s concern turned out to be completely warranted, as the breast ultrasound ‘found suspicious masses,’ so biopsies were performed on her mother’s breast tissue and she was scheduled for a breast MRI.
Thurston then summed up just how quickly her mother’s world was turned upside down.
‘Within two weeks of her “normal” mammogram and her advocating for herself, she was diagnosed with cancer,’ she concluded her post.
Thurston — who starred on season 17 of The Bachelorette in 2021 — previously revealed in February of last year that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer.
‘I had a small lump in my breast around the 10’oclock spot,’ she shared on Instagram. ‘I discovered it myself. Thought maybe it was my period [or] maybe it was muscle soreness from working out. But, eventually, this lump never went away.’
Just a month later, Thurston got married to the comedian Jeff Arcuri amid her cancer battle.
The two had an intimate backyard ceremony shortly after she had moved from Los Angeles to New York to pursue fertility treatments.
Thurston said she was trying to freeze her eggs in order to still be able to have her own children after her cancer treatments.
Thurston revealed her breast cancer diagnosis in February 2025, and a month later she got married to the comedian Jeff Arcuri (pictured). Amid fertility treatments to freeze her eggs before beginning cancer treatments, Thurston revealed her cancer had progressed to stage IV after spreading to her liver
But earlier this month, Thurston revealed that her ‘liver MRI continued to show no evidence of disease,’ though she won’t have her breasts scanned until February
Following the fertility treatments, she would be embarking on a round of chemotherapy, followed by surgery.
But less than a week after Thurston and Arcuri tied the knot, she revealed that her cancer — which had originally been diagnosed as stage III — had progressed to stage IV after it metastasized and spread to her liver.
However, just before she was set to begin chemotherapy, Thurston revealed to her fans that a new test indicated that she had HER2-negative cancer, contradicting an earlier test that suggested it was HER2-positive cancer.
The negative variant, which is less common, also has a better prognosis, as it tends to be less aggressive, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Because of the new results, chemotherapy was put on hold in favor of less aggressive treatments.
Earlier this month, Thurston shared some good news on social media, revealing that her ‘liver MRI continued to show no evidence of disease.’
She added that she won’t know how the treatments are working on her breast cancer, as she won’t be scanned until February.
