Influencer Offends Cancer Survivors With Controversial Social Media Post

Italian influencer and fashion designer Giulia Nati is receiving backlash after sharing a controversial post of herself hooked up to a "handbag drip."

“I need a new wish,” Nati wrote in an Instagram caption for a video showing her laying in a bed with an oxygen mask over her face and a tube connecting her arm to a Hermès handbag simulating an IV drip.

The video also shows seven other Hermès purses placed at her bedside. The post received criticism from several cancer survivors including Venezuelan actress and reality star Carolina Marconi.

“As a former oncology patient, this image doesn’t make me laugh, in fact I find it very sad," Marconi wrote in a translated comment. "I would take you on a tour of these wards to really realize what condition these poor people are in and then we'll see how you feel about publishing something like that."

Nati responded to Marconi's comment and requested to "talk privately," adding that she respected her "as a woman for your strength."

“My mother-in-law’s experiencing the same illness every day, I’m experiencing it first-hand. But that’s beside the point. It was just a light-hearted video. That’s all! Sending you a hug," Nati wrote.

Nati later defended the controversial post in an Instagram story, according to Jam Press via the New York Post.

“The video has received likes from 17,000 people,” Nati said. “Below the video, there are 2,700 comments, including 2,000 insults.”

“So, 17,000 plus 700 equals 17,700 people who approve of the video, as opposed to 2,000 who don’t," she added.