Ariel Meredith Is Advocating for Breast Cancer Awareness Following Harrowing Journey

The five-time SI Swimsuit model is cancer-free after battling Stage 2B triple-negative breast cancer.

Ariel Meredith / Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. According to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, one in eight women will develop breast cancer in their lifetimes. Aside from skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common skin cancer among women. For more information and ways to support, click here.

At this time last year, Ariel Meredith was battling battling Stage 2B triple-negative breast cancer while simultaneously preparing to give birth to her fourth child. On Saturday, Oct. 19, her son Jasir will celebrate his first birthday, and later this month, the five-time SI Swimsuit model will rejoice in being six months cancer-free.

Meredith’s journey and treatment

Initially diagnosed with breast cancer on March 23, 2023 at the age of 38, Meredith began chemotherapy and continued treatments before taking a brief break prior to her son’s birth. After she and her husband, Hakeem Nicks, welcomed Jasir last October, Meredith had a lumpectomy and then started up chemotherapy again in mid December. She ended chemo with two treatments left on Jan. 23, 2024, began radiation a few weeks later and officially rang the bell on April 26, when she was declared cancer-free.

Meredith recently had her annual mammogram, along with CT and bone scans, and received a clean bill of health.

“It just felt like the fight was now finally over,” Meredith, who continued homeschooling her children throughout her cancer treatment, says of that joyous moment back in April. “It felt like this journey has finally come to an end in a positive way. I was really happy, my kids [Amir, Aveila Eliana and Jasir] were ecstatic, my husband was overjoyed, and my parents, everybody who was rooting for me was just like, ‘Oh, O.K., deep breath, now it’s time to celebrate, now it’s time to get back to normalcy, now it’s time to just enjoy life.’”

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Creating community

As she adjusts to what she calls her “new normal,” Meredith has found a renewed sense of purpose in her life, which is to be the best wife, mother and advocate she can be. She’s also grateful for her incredible support system, composed of her family and close friends like Kavita Bass and Terrena Scott, as well as her team of doctors. It is, in part, because of this incredible community that Meredith cultivated that she’s choosing to embrace her role as an advocate for breast cancer awareness.

“Now it’s my time to be there for women, like I have and will continue to do,” Meredith says. “You just need the support. You need the encouragement. You need to feel like sometimes the person you’re talking to has been there and walked in your shoes and [can relate] ... You need that relatable friendship to be able to be like, ‘Hey, it’s O.K. You’re not alone. We all went through it just like you.’”

These days, Meredith reflects upon her breast cancer journey as a positive one, and says her life these days is “beautiful” and dream-like. She’s prioritizing things that make her smile, like getting regular massages, hiking and spending time with her family. Meredith is also considering embracing her inner daredevil soon by skydiving.

“I’m just taking more time to make sure that I’m living enough,” Meredith says of her priorities. “You want to make sure with any journey, not just cancer, ‘Hey, have I stopped a second? Are we living enough? Are we enjoying?’ You just want to make sure that [you are] making the most of life because I witnessed how quickly you can get a phone call and it goes upside down.”

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Advocacy work

When it comes to breast cancer awareness, Meredith says it is vitally important for women to advocate for their breast health. She points out that many women don’t always feel a knot or a lump. Since many types of breast cancer do not present themselves with noticeable physical symptoms, it’s important to get checked out routinely and perform breast self-exams at home regularly.

“Advocating for yourself [is vital],” she says. “Sometimes doctors are not going to give you a referral to go get a mammogram unless they feel something.”

Paying attention to your body and leading a healthy lifestyle, like being mindful of the ingredients in the foods you consume, is a great way to prioritize your physical well-being, according to Meredith. And while breast cancer in women under 50 is on the rise, there are plenty of ways for women to prioritize their breast health, like scheduling regular mammograms (every two years starting at the age of 40 for those at average risk) and assessing one’s lifetime risk of developing breast cancer.

Meredith wishes to remind those currently facing a breast cancer diagnosis that they are not alone, and that there is a community of survivors waiting to embrace you.

“At the end of it, remembering your why [is so important],” she says. “You know, remembering why you’re here, what your purpose is, and remembering that no matter what life throws at you, you can do it. You can do anything.”