Ep 91: Hello Beautiful: Who Are You When Breast Cancer Changes Everything? with Christine Handy

What happens when life strips away the things you thought made you valuable?

In this episode, I sit down with model, author, breast cancer survivor, and executive producer Christine Handy, whose bestselling novel Walk Beside Me was inspired by her own experience with breast cancer and has now been adapted into the feature film Hello Beautiful.

Starring Tricia Helfer, Hello Beautiful follows Willow, a successful model whose breast cancer diagnosis disrupts not only her body and health, but her sense of identity, beauty, relationships, and self-worth. The film is officially headed to theaters nationwide on September 25, 2026.

But this conversation isn't simply about surviving cancer.

Christine began modeling at just 11 years old, entering an industry where appearance wasn't only noticed—it had value. We talk about what happens when a woman learns to see herself through other people's eyes, and what it takes to rebuild an identity when the external validation you've relied upon no longer feels solid.

Christine shares a phrase I absolutely love: “I don't want to be a victim. I want to be a vine.”

We explore what that actually means—not pretending that terrible things don't happen, but learning how to grow around the things we cannot change.

We also talk about beauty after illness, aging and visibility, the complicated relationship women have with our bodies, and whether it's possible to enjoy fashion and beauty without asking our appearance to prove our worth.

And we get into something I think deserves a much bigger conversation: Have we turned resilience into yet another expectation for women?

Sometimes life is devastating. Sometimes we're angry. Sometimes we don't need to immediately turn pain into gratitude, purpose, personal growth, or an inspirational fucking Instagram post.

Christine and I talk about making room for that reality while still choosing hope.

We also discuss the surreal experience of seeing your own life transformed first into a book and then into a film—and how Christine keeps breast cancer from becoming another identity she has to live inside.