“I’m Here to Celebrate Life”: Bianca Balti’s Message to Cancer Warriors

“Unfortunately, everywhere I go, they ask me to talk about my pain. When I decided to participate in the festival, I explained to Carlos that I didn’t come here because I’m a cancer patient. First and foremost, I am a professional. I came as a top model — to wear my clothes, to compete with Cristiano (Malgioglio). I don’t want to talk about my pain — I came here to have fun.” - Bianca Balti

The author of these powerful words is Bianca Balti, an Italian supermodel and actress. She's a well-known face of luxury fashion houses such as Dolce & Gabbana, Chanel, and Roberto Cavalli. In 2024, she was diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian cancer. Her strength and openness in sharing her journey have made her an inspiration to millions of cancer patients around the world.

As a cancer survivor myself, I deeply relate to her words. I know how important it is not to be identified with the disease. Maintaining mental health during the healing process is essential, as it requires personal resilience, supportive attitudes, as well as healthy perceptions and expectations from those around us.

Being treated as a whole person — with your goals, interests, and profession — is an important part of the journey.

What It Means?

• Your mental health matters just as much as physical healing during illness.

• You need your own strength and emotional resilience to face the challenges of recovery.

• But equally important is having people around you who are:

  
  

  - Emotionally supportive and kind.

  - Who don’t reduce you to just a diagnosis, and hold healthy, respectful expectations - seeing you as capable, purposeful, and whole.

Their mindset matters!

This year, April 9th has been designated by IPOS (the International Psycho-Oncology Society) as World Psycho-Oncology Day. So, I dedicate this blog post to that day, with a simple yet powerful message:

“Treat me like I’m healthy.”

To honor this message, I collaborated with my friend, Salome Jikuri, known as @mejiqo — a talented artist and illustrator from Georgia. We chose art as a way to share hope, strength, and motivation with cancer patients and their loved ones.

She created a stunning illustration of Bianca Balti, and I wrote a motivational text inspired by Bianca's story. She loved the project — and today, I’m thrilled to share it with you.

You can view the art project on Instagram.

Are you ready to be inspired?

Let’s go!

“I’m not here to play the sick cancer patient;

I’m here as a top model to celebrate life”

Who am I? My heartbeat echoes far beyond the silence. Sometimes, I feel emotionally drained. Sometimes, everyone around me demands that I speak about my pain. Someone once said, "You need to be brave." But today, I choose to listen to my own voice. What do I truly desire in life? I have decided to fight –

And my determination has made others, Put their heads high.

Yes, a cancer diagnosis is a turning point.

And from that moment,

I call you to listen to your hearts; turn them like a spotlight.

Because here I am –

Authentic, without masks or facades.

I am who I am –

A woman with a shaved head, scars, wounds, and pain.

But every battle brings new strength.

Every struggle is a life lesson, a transformation in disguise.

It's my deepest wish that you believe in yourself too –

That you discover the unshakable warrior within.

Together, we will win.

Together, we will rise.