A former cancer scientist turned sex worker now wants to use her content to fund breakthroughs into the disease she once researched.
Monalita, real name Mona Huygelen, is a 27-year-old Belgian adult content creator who charges subscribers just over £5 per month for her risqué photos and videos.
Before dramatically changing career paths Ms Huygelen was a biochemist.
She specifically researched liver cancer and the changes that can occur in blood vessels within the organ as the disease emerges.
However, a tragedy in her personal life led her to reassess her career and she eventually turned to adult content creation.
She is now in a position to give back to her original field of research and, to tie in with Breast Cancer Awareness Month, she is donating $100,000 (£77,000) of the proceeds of her explicit photos and videos to a cancer research charity.
‘Since October is also Breast Cancer Awareness Month it seemed like the perfect time to come full circle and use my talents to fund an entire cancer research project,’ she said.
Additionally, the website that Ms Huygelen hosts her content on, Fansly, has committed to matching the amount she has raised meaning a total of $200,000 (£154,000) will be dedicated to cancer research.
Monalita, real name Mona Huygelen, is a 27-year-old Belgian adult content creator who charges subscribers just over £5 per month for her risqué photos and videos but now wants to use her ‘talents’ to fund cancer research
The timing of the fundraiser also holds a special significance to Ms Huygelen given, had she stayed in science, she would have completed her research project.
‘If I would have continued my PHD this year, October 2024, would have been the month where I finished it,’ she said.
She detailed how it was the loss of her father, to the very same disease she was researching, which motivated her to reassess her priorities.
‘Losing my father had a huge impact on me like it made me realize that I wanted to live my life to the fullest while I was still young and healthy,’ she said.
‘I left science and became an online fitness coach and content creator.
‘Along the way I started experimenting with a little more spicy videos and pictures.’
Ms Huygelen, who has some 83,000 subscribers for her racy pics, said she was amazed to be in the position where she could make a contribution to cancer research again.
She has specifically decided to work with the US-based charity the Prevent Cancer Foundation.
Before dramatically changing career paths Monalita was a biochemist specifically researched liver cancer and the changes that can occur in blood vessels within the organ as the disease emerges
She is now in a position to give back to her original field of research and, to tie in with Breast Cancer Awareness Month, she is donating $100,000 (£77,000) of the proceeds of her explicit photos and videos to a cancer research charity
Ms Huygelen chose this charity as research to find ways of stopping cancer from occurring, in contrast to treating it after the disease emerges, was underfunded.
She explained the money she donates could go to projects with a variety of potential cancer prevention outcomes.
‘These can be tools for early onset cancer detection, the impact of food, certain nutrients, and other lifestyle factors on your risk of developing cancer,’ she said.
‘Or describing certain toxins that increase your risk of cancer, for example asbestos.’
Monalita added: ‘I know from my own experience as a scientist…that cancer prevention is wildly underfunded,’ she said.
