Meet Carrie

Carrie Cagnassola, a breast cancer survivor from Indianapolis, Indiana, wanted to feel inspired in Peru. She volunteered through Eli Lilly and Company’s Connecting Hearts Abroad program, which partnered with A Fresh Chapter, last fall. Carrie previously advocated for screening women with dense breast tissue. Her experience at Amate, a breast cancer organization in Lima, opened her eyes to other needs that were worth fighting for.

Making an Impact

Carrie, left, participating in an activity with Amate and A Fresh Chapter

At Amate, Carrie learned that early screening for cancer was not the norm in Peru. Women diagnosed with breast cancer found it at later stages. She heard stories of women who felt stigmatized by their communities and spouses. Women felt shame and did not advocate for themselves.

As an organization, Amate faced numerous challenges, including funding. There was not a culture of giving and volunteering in Peru. Carrie and her team helped the staff brainstorm ways to raise money and engage the community. Amate expressed a wish to offer massage to the women suffering from lymphedema. Lymphedema, a potential side effect of breast cancer surgeries and radiation, causes swelling, pain or tightness in the arms or hands. With Amate’s limited resources, hiring a massage therapist seemed unlikely.

Still, Carrie wanted to help the women she saw at Amate with swollen arms. Instead of being given customized compression sleeves, like she received after treatment, doctors offered women bandages. Since Carrie wore her sleeve in Peru, to help with altitude changes, she showed it to the women there. She explained how it pushed lymph fluid out of her arm and lowered her risk for developing lymphedema. “I know if I didn’t have that sleeve, I would have another set of issues. That sleeve is a critical thing for me.”

Working with Partners

Carrie and the other volunteers decided to reach out to their connections back in the U.S. They hoped to find a way to bring sleeves to the women at Amate. Upon returning home, Carrie continued to work on the project—with support from Terri Wingham, CEO of A Fresh Chapter, and others.

Women at Amate modeling their new sleeves from LympheDIVAs

LympheDIVAs, a company that makes compression products for breast cancer patients, agreed to sell “seconds” at a greatly reduced rate. “Our mission is to help women feel strong and confident, and when Terri and Carrie reached out to us to help, we knew we had to be part of this,” said Anna Sokolowski, creative director at LympheDIVAs. Carrie found funding to provide 25 women with sleeves and gauntlets, a sort of fingerless glove worn on the hand.

Since therapists typically measure patients for their garments, someone at Amate needed to become the resident expert. LympheDIVAs worked on translating instructions into Spanish. Although the project started in October, when Carrie was in Peru with A Fresh Chapter, it took several months of planning and coordinating. The sleeves finally shipped in March. “We thought we did everything right,” Carrie said. An unexpected fee in customs further delayed the delivery.

Gratitude from Amate

Women at Amate began wearing their compression sleeves and noticing the difference they made. Delia reported, “One day I had excessively strained my arm and I felt a lot of pain. Immediately I looked for my lymphedema sleeve and put it on. Two days later the pain had completely disappeared.” Another recipient, Gina, shared, “It was very helpful when I moved, and also when I traveled to Cuzco and Iquitos; it helped me a lot because of the pressure. Just after I started using the sleeve, I understood how useful they are for us.”

Other women said the sleeves helped with everyday tasks, such as cleaning, babysitting, and caregiving.

Carrie saw firsthand how volunteering took A Fresh Chapter participants out of their personal stories and into the lives of others. “When you have cancer, you’re so consumed with your story and what might happen to you…It helped to volunteer. For me, it made me so grateful.” Carrie has since retired from Lilly. Her time in Peru inspired her, in ways she hopes to continue exploring.

If you, or someone you know, has been impacted by cancer and you’re looking for an opportunity to expand your story, explore our programs and apply today. We are now accepting rolling applications for our Odyssey programs in South Africa, Peru, Costa Rica, and India. Join us as we #explorelifebeyondcancer.