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'Bachelor's' Lesley Murphy poses topless after double mastectomy

Story highlights
  • Murphy had a preventative mastectomy
  • She will undergo reconstructive surgery

(CNN) Lesley Murphy says she decided to kick "cancer's a** before it could kick mine."

The former "Bachelor" contestant is healing after recently undergoing a preventive double mastectomy.

Murphy, a travel blogger who appeared on on Season 17 of "The Bachelor," said she decided to have the surgery after she tested positive for the BRCA 2 gene mutation, which increases the risk of developing breast cancer.

In a posting before her surgery, Murphy shared on her Instagram account that her mother is a breast cancer survivor.

The sun has set, and my final night with all body parts is here and now😱In less than 24 hours I will wake up different. What a strange feeling it is to miss your boobs, but I know this prophylactic double mastectomy is for the best. I have lots of life to live and potential cancerous cells aren't welcome here👋🏻✌🏻Thanks to all my family, friends and followers for wearing pink today and loving me the way you do! Thanks especially for drawing attention to genetic testing and raising awareness that saves lives. Y'all are my heroes. If you are new here, I recently tested positive for the BRCA 2 gene mutation which greatly increases my risk of developing breast cancer. My mom was diagnosed almost three years ago to the day and came out a badass survivor! It's because of her diagnosis that I underwent genetic testing and can now do something about it. Knowledge is power. #LesleysBreasties #LesnipsBRCAinthebud #FightLikeAGirl

"It's because of her diagnosis that I underwent genetic testing and can now do something about it," Murphy wrote. "Knowledge is power."

Murphy documented her surgery and its aftermath on social media.

Day 1 post op. Oouuuchh. My mom took this photo when I first arrived to my hospital room after surgery. It was hard to breathe. My chest was super tight and still is. There are so many tubes hooked up to me and lots of beeping noises. My boobs are gone. Crazy, right? Gone. It's hard to wrap my head around. My doctors and nurses come by all the time to check on my vitals and give me pills to ease the pain. I really love the people here. Everyone is SO nice at @uamshealth. The staff and level of care is topnotch. There is a chance I could go home tonight, but truth be told, I'm not so sure I want to! The grilled cheese and coconut chocolate cake make me happy. Moving hurts. I tried getting out of bed for the first time about an hour ago. I don't want to do it again but know I have to. I finally caught a glimpse of my bare chest during a FaceTime call a couple of minutes ago. Whoa. It looks like I was in a bear fight and lost. Badly. The human body is truly amazing, though, and I will heal soon enough. I am overwhelmed with the outpouring of support from friends, family, followers and complete strangers. So so overwhelmed. You guys know how to make a bruised and weak woman feel on top of the world. Thank you from the bottom of my heart💗Your prayers, well wishes and good vibes are working🙏🏻 #LesNipBRCAintheBud #LesleysBreasties #FightLikeAGirl #BreastCancerAwareness

Day 2 post op. Baby steps, but not many. Just enough to show the doctors I can walk in order to go home. It's funny to look at this video and see a slight smile. This was no walk in the park. Ow. I think I was just glad to be in anything but a horizontal position. It was time to disconnect the IV, the oxygen tube and those lovely compression socks I couldn't wait to leave behind! That red apron you see around my waist holds the 4 drains that I have to measure every day, so those will be coming with me and eating with me and sleeping with me and showering with me. Unfortunately they are sewn into my sides and when they read a certain amount of fluids coming from my chest, I can finally get them removed which will be a huge milestone. A few minutes after this video was taken, I somehow shuffled myself into a wheelchair. I was so nervous as we made our way to the car. Dad drove slowly and carefully, but you can't always avoid every single bump in the road. Ouuuchh. And just like that, we were home🏡A shower is now in order since I still have iodine and permanent marker all over my chest from surgery markings. Walking and breathing still doesn't come easy, so this should be veryyy interesting🙈😝 #LesNipsBRCAintheBud #LesleysBreasties #FightLikeAGirl #BreastCancerAwareness

In one photo, Murphy poses topless with her hair cascading over where her breasts used to be.

"I think my upper half is healing nicely," she wrote. "Sure, it's sunken in and lumpy because what you see are deflated expanders that were put in, which will gradually get filled every 2-3 weeks as I get ready for reconstructive surgery."

My Sunday best, or what I could manage to put on today with limited arm movements.🤷🏼‍♀️My mom washed and dried my hair today. She dresses me in the mornings. She also measures my drains twice daily which are the tubes you see coming out of my lovely red apron I never take off. She's the freaking best. She slept in my hospital room and bed at home for the first few nights, helping me in and out of bed and giving me meds at horrid hours to control the pain. I have to sleep on my back in the exact same position every night. Sometimes when I make the wrong movements it feels like my chest is detaching from my body, but all in all, I think my upper half is healing nicely! Sure, it's sunken in and lumpy because what you see are deflated expanders that were put in which will gradually get filled every 2-3 weeks as I get ready for reconstructive surgery. Hopefully by then the permanent marker will be off my body😂I feel lucky because my surgeons only made one vertical incision on the lower half of both breasts while saving skin & nipple. So while all breast tissue is (hopefully) gone, I retained some of the old me! Happy Sunday. God is good.🙌🏻💞 #LesleysBreasties #LesNipsBRCAintheBud #BreastCancerAwareness #FightLikeAGirl

Her doctors "only made one vertical incision on the lower half of both breasts while saving skin & nipple" Murphy wrote.

"So while all breast tissue is (hopefully) gone, I retained some of the old me," she added. "God is good."

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