( CNN ) -- Jeanne Tripplehorn 's movie is about women and breast cancer . And it 's airing on Lifetime . Uh oh , this could get weepy . Tripplehorn , who has starred in cable show `` Big Love , '' knows how preachy and awkward cancer movies can get . `` This was something different , '' she said , of the film , which airs Monday at 9 p.m. `` I spoke with Lifetime and they wanted it to be a new approach and a new way of looking at cancer . '' The actress has seen the disease 's toll . `` Like all women , I had been affected , '' she said . `` Women in my family dealt with breast cancer . They all survived . It was important for me to do this on a lot of different levels . It was n't just a paycheck . '' The movie , `` Five '' tells stories of different women coping with breast cancer in five vignettes . Tripplehorn 's character , an oncologist is the tie that binds the five stories together . Her character loses her mother to breast cancer as a young girl and becomes an oncologist . The project has a bevy of star power . The executive producers are Jennifer Aniston , Marta Kauffman , co-creator of the series `` Friends '' and Kristin Hahn , who was the executive producer of `` The Departed . '' Aniston , Demi Moore and Alicia Keys each directed one of the vignettes . The ensemble cast includes Patricia Clarkson , Rosario Dawson , Ginnifer Goodwin , Josh Holloway , Tracee Ellis Ross , Tony Shalhoub and Jeffrey Tambor . Tripplehorn answered a few questions for CNN not long ago . CNN : Did you work with an oncologist , or consult a doctor for your role ? Tripplehorn : I consulted an oncologist . I read a lot . The thing that I found confusing and frustrating is once you have this diagnosis , there is this maze of doctors . There was n't one particular way of dealing with a diagnosis . I was just very confused to the journey that one takes after a diagnosis . You have your mammogram , your radiologist , your oncologist . Jen [ Aniston ] and her producing partner Kristin [ Hahn ] toured a clinic that hopefully will become a model for clinics across the country . It 's almost a one-stop shop with everything a woman needs - the doctors , radiologists . It 's all under one roof . And hopefully that will simplify before we get a cure . CNN : What resonated with you about the story ? Tripplehorn : Just the way they were telling the story -- the five short films dealing with different women with the diagnoses . I thought it was an interesting way of telling stories . Five directors who are women , for me , personally , it was a great experience to work with each of these directors . Alicia Keys is a first time director . You would never know it when you see her film . CNN : Did having family members who 've had breast cancer influence you in taking part in this project ? Tripplehorn : I had two women on my mother 's side of the family ; both went through bouts of breast cancer . Both survived . My grandmother was a two-time survivor of breast cancer . She passed away of something different 15 years after her last diagnosis . It 's close to my heart and experience . CNN : Having family members who 've had this disease , does it make you concerned about your risk ? Tripplehorn : It 's a constant reminder . It 's always in the news . It 's always out there . So , it 's just what you live with . It 's what you face . You try to watch your diet , you 're constantly aware of it . Some people put their head in the sand and I 'm not that kind of person . I 'm very aware of it . CNN : Your character in the movie gets genetic testing for breast cancer . Have you ever thought about it ? Tripplehorn : I think it 's a personal thing . It 's not something that I 'm thinking of doing . It 's very personal . CNN : What 's your message through this movie ? Tripplehorn : No woman should have to go through this . I 've seen it up close and personal . The fact that we 're airing this during Breast Cancer Awareness Month , it 's a small part that I could do -- if I could raise awareness , if women see this and get a mammogram . When I started this project , it had been two years since I got a mammogram , because I was so busy . That 's what happens with women . They are so busy taking care of other people , they do n't put themselves first . You have to go out and do these small things . Getting a mammogram , doing your monthly self-exam , your diet , just taking care of yourself . If this film will remind women out there to do just that , that 's a step in the right direction . It 's not every project that you can do this -- that can possibly directly impact somebody 's life . And that was my hope .
Jeanne Tripplehorn knows how preachy and awkward cancer movies can get . `` Five '' tells stories of different women coping with breast cancer in five vignettes . The first is about a woman who has been diagnosed with the disease, but refuses to go through surgery because she wants her life back.