The women we care for are themselves caregivers—they are mothers, they are daughters, they have jobs that put food on the table. Until this trip, I never fully understood the profound difference that access to minimally invasive laparoscopic surgery can make in allowing a patient to pursue treatment.

While it is not our primary focus, we recognize that advocacy is an important tool to promote access to safe, timely, and affordable surgeries for the patients we aim to serve. This past spring, we met with other global surgery experts to push for more investment in surgical services.

The 2019 Oncological Surgery Mission Trip concluded in Santa Cruz on April 13. As with everything we do, it took an untold numbers of individuals and institutions working in solidarity to make this mission trip possible.

In April, a Solidarity Visit with three of our closest Bolivian collaborators reminded us that we are one: somos uno.

Dr. Meredith (Gay) Garrett received Solidarity Bridge’s top honor, the 2018 Solidarity Award, at our annual gala on April 14.