‘It Pisses Me Off’: Actress Katie Thurston, 35, Says Frustrating Breast Cancer Treatment Side Effects Have Affected Her Brain, Bones, and Sex Life

@thekatiethurston A rant on behalf of all of us with #breastcancer #hormones #menopause ♬ original sound – Katie Thurston

Menopause is a normal part of aging that typically begins in women between the ages of 45 and 55. Symptoms of menopause include body changes, hot flashes, and aches and pains. Certain cancer treatments can cause the ovaries to stop producing estrogen, which is considered medically induced menopause.

“I’m 35 years old, and I’m no longer allowed to have hormones, and as it stands now, as someone with stage 4, I can never have hormones. What that means is my brain health, my heart health, my bone health, my sexual health – compromised.”

Hormone‑blocking medications are used by many breast cancer patients, but for younger women, the side effects can be devastating. Thurston says the impact touches every part of her life.

Mood, Motivation and Mental Health

“Your mood, motivation, all these things that make you feel like you’re ready to tackle life — we don’t get that anymore. We have brain fog, we have mood swings, we are sad to be going through what we are going through, and rightfully so. I started an antidepressant this year to help with that.”

Hormone suppression also puts her at risk for osteoporosis — weakening of the bones – something she never imagined worrying about at her age.

“We have to get a bone scan to measure the density of our bones because once we stop having hormones, we are at risk of osteoporosis — am I going to break my hip if I’m diving for a volleyball? It sucks having to think that way.”

The National Osteoporosis Foundation notes that the following cancer treatments can have negative effects on bone health:

• Aromatase inhibitors — These drugs block aromatase from turning androgen into estrogen in the body, resulting in decreased estrogen levels and an increased risk of osteoporosis and fractures.
• Androgen Deprivation Therapy — This hormonal therapy given to some men with prostate cancer may result in bone density loss and fractures.
• Chemotherapy — Chemotherapy can affect bone health in women when it shuts down the ovaries and causes early menopause in premenopausal women. Like aromatase inhibitors, chemotherapy that causes early menopause through ovarian inhibition leads to lower estrogen levels.
• Oophorectomy or medically shutting down ovaries — Removing ovaries surgically or medically shutting them down can lead to bone density issues.

WATCH: What Can You Do to Strengthen Your Bones During Cancer Treatment?

Fortunately, there are interventions that can help keep bones healthier and reduce the risk of fractures. Both medications and lifestyle changes may be recommended by a doctor to keep bones strong and healthy.

RELATED: Breast Cancer & Bone Health: What You Need to Know

Intimacy, Pain, and the Loss of Sexual Health

Thurston is equally open about how treatment has affected her relationship and her sense of self.

“Vaginal dryness, we can experience UTIs, sex becomes painful, therefore you don’t want to have it anymore and your libido drops, and the number of times I’ve been intimate with my partner this year has been less than five, and thankfully he’s a supportive partner, and once you have medically induced menopause…nothing is the same down there.”

It’s a part of cancer care that many women struggle with silently, and one Thurston refuses to hide.

“As if my daily medication for breast cancer wasn’t enough,” Thurston exclaimed.

The physical and emotional strain piles up. The treatments, the scans, the side effects, the losses all of it accumulates. However, for Thurston, she says the hardest part is knowing that the only way to stay alive is to keep giving up pieces of herself.

“I have to remove my breasts, remove my ovaries, remove my hormones just to stay alive.”

“It really bothers me that this is the solution right now. I have to remove my breasts, remove my ovaries, remove my hormones just to stay alive, but at what cost? Am I really even living life if I’m in pain, depressed, cannot be intimate, and cannot carry my own child if I have to do it just to survive?”

Her honesty highlights a truth many young cancer patients face.

“In some of these cases, there’s not a lot that we can do,” Thurston said.

Thurston acknowledges that some aspects of medically induced menopause simply don’t have good solutions yet.

Thurston’s experience is not completely isolated, as a growing number of young women are being diagnosed with breast cancer at rising rates, and experts say the timing couldn’t be more disruptive, as many women under 50 are often balancing careers, families, and major life ambitions.

National Cancer Institute data show breast, uterine, and kidney cancers climbing in people under 50, with the sharpest increases in women in their 20s and 30s. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that nearly 10% of new U.S. breast cancer cases occur in women younger than 45.

Dr. Eleonora Teplinsky, a breast and gynecologic medical oncologist at Valley Health System, has watched this shift firsthand. What was once rare is now a growing part of her daily practice: young women facing one of the most life‑altering diagnoses imaginable.

Teplinsky’s book, Beyond the Pink: Navigating Life, Health, and Breast Cancer, aims to give these younger patients what they’ve long needed: an honest, compassionate, and practical guide tailored to their experience.

“When I started practicing, it was really unusual to have a young person in their 20s or 30s be diagnosed. It happened, but it was rare. And over the last decade, it has become much more common,” Dr. Teplinsky tells SurvivorNet.

Katie’s Ongoing Treatment

Thurston previously shared that her treatment regimen includes three key medications:

• Kisqali (ribociclib): Approved by the FDA in 2017, this targeted therapy is used in combination with endocrine therapy to treat HR+/HER2- breast cancer. It works by slowing the progression of cancer, offering a more tolerable alternative to traditional chemotherapy.
• Lupron (leuprolide): A hormone therapy injection that lowers estrogen levels in the body, helping to prevent the cancer from growing.
• Letrozole: An aromatase inhibitor that reduces the body’s estrogen production, commonly used in postmenopausal women with hormone-sensitive breast cancer.

Treatment Options for Advanced Breast Cancer

Metastatic breast cancer (also called stage 4) means cancer cells have spread from the breast to other parts of the body, which may include the bones, liver, lungs, brain, and beyond.

Breast cancer spreads through the bloodstream or lymphatic system. The blood carries cancer cells to different body parts, where they grow as new tumors.

As the cancer spreads to other body parts, patients may experience additional symptoms depending on where the cancer has spread. Examples include:

• Bones: Severe bone pain or fractures
• Lungs: Difficulty breathing, chest pain, new cough
• Liver: Yellowing of the skin (jaundice), abdominal pain, nausea, and/or vomiting
• Brain: Headaches, memory loss, changes in vision, seizures

WATCH: Treatment options for metastatic breast cancer

Although stage 4 breast cancer is not curable, several treatment options exist that can extend the life of patients. Treatment options depend on the stage, type of primary breast cancer, and whether hormone receptors are positive.

Treatment can include a combination of:

• Chemotherapy: Oral or IV medications that are toxic to tumor cells
• Hormonal therapies: Drugs that lower estrogen levels or block estrogen receptors from allowing the cancer cells to grow
• Targeted therapies: Drugs that target your tumor’s specific gene mutations
• Immunotherapy: Medications that stimulate your immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells
• Radiation: The use of high-energy rays to kill tumor cells and shrink tumors
• Surgery: To remove a cancerous tumor or lymph nodes (uncommon with stage IV; more common in stages I, II, and III)
• Clinical trials: Studies of new medications, treatments, and other therapies offer hope for better outcomes.

Questions to Ask Your Doctor

If you’re considering a mastectomy, it can be helpful to go into the conversation with your doctor prepared. Here are some key questions to ask as you weigh your options. SurvivorNet’s proprietary AI tool, “My Health Questions,” can also support you along the way by providing evidence‑based answers aligned with cancer treatment guidelines and informed by oncologists across multiple specialties.

• What can I do to prepare for a double mastectomy?
• What happens before and after the procedure?
• For reconstruction, what are the benefits of using implants over my own tissue and vice versa?
• What should I know about implants?
• What will recovery look like after the procedure?

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