Former Bachelorette Katie Thurston is opening up about how her relationship with her body has changed throughout her cancer journey.
“There’s so many layers to that. I’ve gone through different moments. There’s a level of accepting my body and being like, ‘I’m alive. I’m here.’ But then there’s also a level of like, ‘OK, but what was I doing in the past before this?’ I wasn’t going to the gym, I wasn’t drinking water,” Thurston, 35, exclusively told Us on Wednesday, October 21, while discussing Breast Cancer Awareness Month. “There’s a reflection of like, ‘How can I be better for myself?’”
She added that she sometimes hesitates to discuss those lifestyle changes because she does not want anyone to believe they are responsible for developing cancer. “Everybody, regardless of a diagnosis, there’s a level of like, ‘Alright, I need to be drinking my water.’ Like, ‘Do I really need that fourth glass of wine? I don’t know,’” Thurston said.
Thurston publicly revealed her breast cancer diagnosis in 2025, the same year she married comedian Jeff Arcuri. More than 600 days after receiving her diagnosis, she announced earlier this month that doctors had found “no evidence of disease.”
Katie Thurston was diagnosed with breast cancer in February 2025, at age 34. “I had a small lump in my breast around the 10’oclock [sic] spot,” the former Bachelorette wrote on her Instagram Stories that month. “I discovered it myself. Thought maybe it was my period [or] maybe it was muscle soreness […]
During her health journey, Thurston also underwent her first cosmetic procedure, saying it gave her a sense of control over her life. The Breast Cancer Research Foundation spokesperson told followers that she had chin liposuction in September.
“It was something I was thinking about doing,” she told Us. “I’ve had so many medical procedures — like biopsies, my breasts have been removed, like so much — I was like, ‘You know what? I’m gonna do this because I want to and just because I have a diagnosis doesn’t mean I’m not allowed to want to be pretty and feel good about myself.’”
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Thurston said she faced criticism from people who felt her stage IV cancer diagnosis should have made her focus solely on being alive. “I got a lot of judgment from people that were like, ‘Well, you have stage IV cancer. You should be happy to be alive.’ Like, I’m also 35, a newlywed. I want to feel hot, OK? I want to feel good about myself and if that means I’m going to the gym … It’s my life, my body, and I think that’s a big thing I’ve also learned. It’s so easy to criticize somebody else but you never know what they’re going through or how they’re feeling. I’ve really learned, ‘Hey if it makes them happy, then I’m happy for them.’”
Although online users have judged her choices, Thurston said she continues to believe in the value of using her public platform to speak honestly about her experience.
While some relationships from Bachelor Nation stand the test of time, others end before the Neil Lane engagement ring can even be resized. The Bachelor premiered on ABC in March 2002, with Alex Michel introduced as the world’s most eligible Bachelor. More than 20 women competed for his heart, launching one of reality television’s most successful franchises. […]
“I do try to protect my peace, but I’m also just a very public person, and I’ve never really been shy about my thoughts and my feelings and my experiences,” she said. “I think I shared my diagnosis two days after getting the phone call. So I do recognize when there’s a time to like step away or to turn off the DMs or whatever it is, because I do think it’s so important to find balance and protect your peace. But overall, again, I think I’m just so exposed to it from reality TV life that this is nothing.”
Thurston is also using her platform to advocate for breast cancer research and stress the importance of early detection.
“The only way to catch that is [through] early detection, and so I’m really trying to educate women, especially those under 40, how to be an advocate for themselves, how to check their breasts,” she said. “Check for changes, not just lumps, but the appearance. Maybe it’s dimpling, maybe it’s inverted nipples or discharge, things that just aren’t normal. Really work with your medical team to figure out if this is something to explore further.”