Katie Thurston has shared an update after revealing earlier this month that she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
The former Bachelorette star, 34, took to Instagram on Friday and shared that after undergoing some tests, she learned that her breast cancer has spread to her liver.
"It is fairly small," she said. "However, that does put me at stage four. But as of now, my new treatment plan is going to start next Friday. It does involve chemo."
Thurston began her video by addressing questions about why she hasn't started treatment yet, 43 days after her diagnosis.
Former Bachelorette Katie Thurston reveals what led to breast cancer diagnosisIn the caption of the video, she wrote, "There is a lot of testing and prep that goes into cancer treatment."
"One important test is checking to see if the cancer has metastasized (spread)," she added and said in the video that she underwent a CT scan, bone density scan, blood work and MRI. She also underwent a PET scan.
"What's great about a PET scan is that sometimes it can detect things that some of the other tests did not," Thurston said.
She continued, "Unfortunately, in my case, it did detect some spots on my liver that were a little suspicious. Because of this, I did have to then do a liver biopsy to see if my cancer has spread."
"After days of waiting, unfortunately, I did find out today that my breast cancer has spread to my liver," she added.
Earlier this month, Thurston revealed to ABC News that she was diagnosed with Stage 3 triple positive ductal carcinoma, a type of cancer where tumor cells have estrogen receptors, progesterone receptors, and HER2 receptors on their surface, according to the U.S. National Cancer Institute.
She learned about her diagnosis in February, just a few months after she became engaged to comedian Jeff Acuri.
Earlier this week, Thurston revealed that she and Acuri tied the knot on March 22 in an intimate backyard ceremony at their home.
'Bachelorette' alum Katie Thurston marries comedian Jeff Arcuri following breast cancer diagnosisThurston said she chose to harvest her eggs following her diagnosis in case she and Acuri try to have a child together in the future.
Despite what she is going through, Thurston said she is staying positive.
"I know stage four can sound very scary and it can be, however, given that I am triple positive and the spots on my liver are fairly small and detected early, I feel very optimistic on my outcome," she said.
"I'm very confident in the team at Columbia, and I just wanted to share that update," she added.
In her interview with ABC News, Thurston said that she hopes sharing her story encourages others to "be proactive" and "get checked out."
"You could be doing yourself a favor in the future," she said.
