Canadian Dabrowski now says that he was diagnosed with breast cancer last spring. Dabrowski played in the Wimbledon tennis tournament as Harri Heliövaara’s mixed doubles pair.
Canadian tennis player Gabriela Dabrowski32, says on her Instagram account that she survived breast cancer last year. Dabrowski says that he was diagnosed with breast cancer in the spring of 2024.
– I know that this matter will come as a shock to many, but I am fine and I will be fine, he writes in his publication.
Dabrowski already noticed a lump in his left breast in the spring of 2023, but the doctor who examined him a couple of months later instructed him not to worry about it. After a year, the lump had grown, and during the WTA’s health checkup, the doctor referred her for further examinations.
After the mammography and ultrasound examination, she was referred for a biopsy, i.e. a tissue examination. The biopsy specimen was immediately examined and Dabrowski was diagnosed with cancer.
– Those are words that no one would ever expect to hear. In one moment, my life turned upside down.
After his diagnosis, Dabrowski underwent two surgeries. His further treatment was delayed to allow the Canadian to compete in tennis tournaments at Wimbledon and the Paris Olympics. Dabrowski returned to the playing fields in June after rehabilitation.
The season became the most successful of his career. Dabrowski won Olympic bronze in mixed doubles in Paris and advanced to the final in women’s doubles at Wimbledon. In addition, she won the WTA final tournament championship in doubles.
At Wimbledon, he played Finnish Harri Heliövaaran as a pair in mixed doubles. The duo’s journey ended in the first round.
Dabrowski did not want to tell about her breast cancer right away, because she wanted to deal with the matter in private and tell her loved ones first. Now she wants to talk about her survival in order to raise awareness about early intervention in cancer symptoms and quality healthcare.
– So often things happen in life that we cannot control and that seem unfair to us. In these matters, we can only decide how we respond to them. It sounds like a cliché, but it’s just true, Dabrowski writes.