Roshumba Williams Shines a Light on Breast Cancer Awareness: ‘Everybody Has a Story to Tell’

The SI Swimsuit legend shares how to be a great support system for a loved one.

Roshumba Williams was photographed by Katherine Goguen at the Hard Rock Hotel New York. / Katherine Goguen/Sports Illustrated

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. According to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, one in eight women in the U.S. will develop breast cancer in their lifetimes. Aside from skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer among U.S. women. This October, SI Swimsuit is committed to providing resources for breast cancer patients while sharing the stories of warriors who have been impacted by the disease. For more information, click here.

When she got the call to participate in SI Swimsuit’s partnership with Hard Rock International for its 26th annual PINKTOBER campaign in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Roshumba Williams couldn’t say “yes” fast enough. The SI Swimsuit legend has been supporting three of her closest girlfriends through their battles with the disease, each of whom were diagnosed within nine months of one another in 2024. Thus, the 57-year-old model has an incredibly personal connection to the PINKTOBER mission and says getting to participate in the campaign was “priceless.”

“Everybody has a story to tell,” she tells SI Swimsuit. “ That’s why I like the fact that it’s a part of the Hard Rock because Hard Rock is about rock and roll. It’s about music, it’s about storytelling and anyone who has been through [breast cancer] has a story to tell: How it affected them, how it affected their family, how it affected their work, how it affected their world, and every story is different.”

Williams, who first posed for the SI Swimsuit Issue in 1990, stars alongside fellow brand models Jasmine Sanders and Nicole Williams English in the PINKTOBER campaign, which features a retail collection of exclusive merchandise, including pins, T-shirts, hoodies and more. This year, proceeds from the campaign will benefit the American Cancer Society.

Roshumba Williams was photographed by Katherine Goguen at the Hard Rock Hotel New York. / Katherine Goguen/Sports Illustrated

“ I’m grateful that SI [Swimsuit] is a part of [the PINKTOBER campaign] because we’re about celebrating the female anatomy and breasts are a major part of the female anatomy,” she says. “For us to get on board with keeping that anatomy healthy, you can’t beat that.”

Supporting a loved one through a breast cancer diagnosis

This Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Williams hopes to help family members and friends of breast cancer survivors, thrivers and patients find ways to support their loved ones in meaningful ways. Whether it was flying across country to be with a girlfriend ahead of a surgery or bringing slippers and bathrobes to the hospital, Williams always provides a shoulder to lean on.

 “Listen more than you speak,” she advises of supporting a loved one through a breast cancer diagnosis. “Make it O.K. for your loved one to be vulnerable, to be emotional, to be not the person you think they should be, to be not courageous, to be different than what they were before this. And just wrap your arms around them and just say, ‘I’m not judging you, I’m not projecting on you, I’m just here to listen and love you.’”

Williams also says that it’s important to meet your loved one where they are in their journey while making space for their needs. Thoughtful acts like sending a card, accompanying them to doctor’s appointments or simply spending quality time together cuddled up on the couch while watching a movie will go a long way.

“No breast cancer experience is the same for any one person,” Williams notes. “It’s different for everybody. Everyone will react differently. Please don’t project how [you] feel or think [a loved one] should react to the experience onto them. Just be a loving place to fall and just accept them and love them and have empathy on whatever their terms are.”

https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/v1759326461/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/si_swimsuit/01k6g0epzrfe5pbhp511.jpg. Breast Self-Exam How To. https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/v1759326461/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/si_swimsuit/01k6g0epx2cbb70y4kje.jpg. PINKTOBER resources EDITED AGAIN. https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/v1759326461/images/voltaxMediaLibrary/mmsport/si_swimsuit/01k6g0epzmb0pcez0mvb.jpg. Community Support Guide. Resources for POC