Gibbs on returning to US Open after beating cancer: 'I'm feeling thankful to be here on a number of levels'

Thursday, 29 August 2019 at 17:46

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Nicole Gibbs may have lost to Simona Halep at the 2019 US Open but to return to the main draw was an achievement in itself according to the Cincinnati ace.

Gibbs had a visit to get her teeth whitened and was diagnosed with cancer as a result in the spring which turned her life upside down.

Fortunately though for the 26 year old, it was slow moving and non aggressive and could be removed straight away. Despite that though, understandably she admitted that she didn't know when she'd return to tennis so is thankful to be back.

'I'm feeling thankful to be here on a number of levels, I didn't win my match but I still found myself in the main draw,' said Gibbs.

'It had been with me some time. I was just really fortunate that it was a very slow moving, non aggressive form of cancer. They were able to treat it just by removing it as opposed to having to go through radiation or chemotherapy so in terms of a cancer diagnosis, it's a dream come true; surgery and then back on the court in a couple of months.'

'There were moments where I wasn't sure how long I'd be here. If I'd be playing tennis anytime soon or at all, I had to allow myself to take a step back and take care of myself as a human being before a tennis player.'

https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1166477483597713415?s=20

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