ALEXANDRIA, Ky. — The youngest breast cancer patient doctors in northern Kentucky have ever seen says she’s still got a lot of life to live. She’s also hoping to inspire others to get checked, and it’s working.

Gabby Thomas would rather look forward than back at the dark cloud she was facing about a year ago, but she said it’s important to do so, and for others to see it as well.

“I felt a lump. And I felt it for probably about eight months. And I didn’t think anything of it because of being so young,” Thomas said.

At just 21 years old, Thomas was a student at Northern Kentucky University studying health science. Last December, she should’ve been enjoying winter break, but instead was paying a visit to the hospital.

“I kept seeing everything last October about Breast Cancer Awareness Month. And I just thought it would be a good time to go get it checked out just to be safe,” she said. “And then they found out it was cancer. So I’m very grateful that I did go get it looked at.”

Thomas said the initial emotion was shock.

“Because I just couldn’t believe it,” she said. “Being so young, it was not what I expected.”

The breast cancer was in stage 3, and had spread to her lymph nodes. It shocked her oncologist, Dr. Matthew Kurian, too.

“She is the youngest person within Kentucky to be diagnosed with breast cancer at that age. It’s not something that we see, typically,” Kurian said.

While Thomas was the youngest, Kurian said the number of women being diagnosed at an earlier age is going up.

“The incidence of breast cancer cases is going down historically from what it was maybe in the 1970s or 80s. But I think the reason that is going down is because we’re finding breast cancer and screening much sooner than what we did in the past,” he said. “But if you look at the number of younger people that are being diagnosed at an earlier age, that number is going up.”

He said some factors could include the increased consumption of processed foods and medications people take.

Thomas’ genetic testing came back negative. She also took some special blood tests to try to answer the question: why her?

“Nothing came back. So they still are very unsure,” she said.

But she didn’t linger on it, and instead got right to work with recovery.

“In my mind, I was like I have to do this. It’s what I have to do. So I just stayed positive and leaned towards God. And he got me through it,” Thomas said.

Treatment included 16 rounds of chemotherapy and a double mastectomy.

“Mentally, it was kind of draining. I was going through all these treatments, and my friends were out going other places and just having fun. And it felt like I couldn’t have fun,” she said. “After every treatment, I would go out with my friends and live my life as best as I could.”

Thomas said it ultimately made her a stronger person.

“It showed me never to take a day for granted. Just live your life as you want to, and just keep on going, don’t look back,” she said.

Even after overcoming all of that, further lab results showed the journey isn’t over yet.

“They said there was still a little bit of cancer, but radiation will take care of it,” Thomas said.

Youngest breast cancer patient is not a title she ever wanted. But Thomas said she thinks a lot of good can come from it.

“Not proud of it, but it’s something that helps me raise awareness to show people that someone this young could actually have it,” she said. “I was the one to ignore it, too, for the longest time. And just prolonged it. And made it worse. So I would just tell people to do self exams, get looked at. The doctors are there to help you. They’re not there to hurt you.”

That message is getting across.

“Gabby’s really been an inspiration, I think, to a lot of people. I can’t tell you how many people have come to me, my own patients have come to me, and said that I’m gonna now get my mammogram as a result of seeing that story,” Kurian said. “If we screen earlier, we diagnose cancers sooner, before they even become cancers sometimes. And we can act on them sooner as a result of that.”

Now 22, Thomas has been through more than a lot of people face in a lifetime. But she’s not only stronger for it, she’s also potentially helping save lives.

She was able to graduate in May, and wants to go into cancer care. She’ll soon start radiation treatment.