TV Star Reveals She’s Losing Her Memory Amid Stage 4 Cancer Battle

Former Bachelorette star Katie Thurston is opening up about the toll cancer is taking—not just on her body, but on her mind.

In a raw and emotional Instagram video posted Sunday, the 34-year-old reality star shared that she’s now two months into treatment for Stage 4 breast cancer, and the journey has been anything but easy.

“I just finished my second month of treatment and if you’re asking how long treatment is, technically forever,” Thurston told fans. “I am optimistic about medical advancements in the future — fingers crossed as a stage 4 girly.”

But her optimism hasn’t shielded her from harsh side effects. “My hair is coming out in unnatural clumps,” she admitted. “I’m losing my memory.”

One particularly scary moment? Getting stopped at customs and drawing a blank when asked where she was coming from. “I looked at him and was like, ‘I don’t remember,’” she said.

She also revealed how her memory loss recently caused tension with her husband, comedian Jeff Arcuri. “We got into a little disagreement and I couldn’t defend myself. I just said, ‘This has happened before,’ and he asked when. I said, ‘I don’t know, but I know it has.’” Despite the stress, she said they’re able to laugh about it now.

Still, Thurston didn’t sugarcoat her reality. “Cancer is s–t,” she said bluntly. “Sometimes I tell myself, ‘Stop feeling bad for yourself.’ Other times I think, ‘You’re allowed to feel bad. Cancer f–king sucks.’”

The former TV star, who rose to fame on Matt James’ season of The Bachelor before leading The Bachelorette Season 17, also shared that she’s now facing a crucial treatment decision involving her liver. She’s opted for histotripsy, a non-invasive procedure that uses focused ultrasound to destroy cancer cells.

“It’s National Cancer Survivors Day,” she added. “Every day that I’m alive, I’m a survivor. So go me, I guess.”

Thurston first revealed her diagnosis earlier this year, just weeks before marrying Arcuri in an intimate New York City ceremony. In March, she disclosed that her cancer had reached Stage 4 after spreading to her liver.

But even then, she remained hopeful. “I know stage four can sound very scary, and it can be,” she said. “However, given that I am triple positive and the spots on my liver are fairly small and detected early, I feel very optimistic.”

Her journey began after she discovered a lump on her breast and decided to get a mammogram. What followed has been a whirlwind of emotions—despair, anger, sadness, and eventually, strength.

“I cried a lot,” she said in a previous post. “But I’m ready.”

And now, she’s fighting—memory loss and all.