Keeping it real.

Former Bachelorette Katie Thurston was diagnosed with breast cancer early last year and has been keeping followers updated throughout her treatment journey online.

Katie later shared that her breast cancer had spread to her liver and progressed to stage 4. Soon after, she began a new treatment plan, and the tumors in her body started shrinking.

Recently, Katie underwent a double mastectomy and has been keeping followers updated with her health and recovery journey.

She has also been open about having to go through hormone suppression for one of her cancer treatments. And now, Katie is getting candid about the life-changing effects she’s already faced due to that treatment.

In a new video online, she shared, “I am 35 years old, and I am no longer allowed to have hormones. And as it stands now as someone who’s stage four, I can never have hormones. And what that means is my brain health, my heart health, my bone health, my sexual health, compromised.”

Katie went on and described some of the side effects she’s been feeling with her brain and body. 

“We have brain fog, we have mood swings, we are sad,” she said. “We are sad to be going through what we’re going through, rightfully so. I actually started an antidepressant for the first time this year to assist with that. We actually have to get a bone scan to measure the density of our bones because once we stop allowing our bodies to have hormones, we are at risk for osteoporosis.”

Katie also discussed struggling with intimacy due to bodily changes, and having to re-evaluate activities like skiing due to the risk of possibly breaking a bone now. 

“It really bothers me that this is the solution right now. You’re telling me that I have to remove my breasts, remove my ovaries, remove my hormones, just to stay alive. But at what cost,” she expressed. “Am I even really living life if I’m everyday in pain, everyday in a depression, everyday unable to be intimate with my partner, everyday remembering I cannot carry my own child anymore? If I’m lucky enough the two embryos I have will be able to be a baby via surrogacy if we can afford that, if we can find somebody.”

“I actually have no idea what the future looks like for me, and for family planning, and for breast cancer. Research is so important when it comes to the future of care for breast cancer patients,” she added. “Being in medically induced menopause sucks.”