Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar | Maria Elvira Salazar Official Website
Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar | Maria Elvira Salazar Official Website
MIAMI, FL – Last Friday, Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL) met with Vanessa Alfonso Lupianez, a 7-year-old girl who received critical cancer treatment in the United States one year after arriving from Cuba with humanitarian parole requested personally by the Congresswoman.
Rep. Salazar’s office was contacted by Lupianez’s grandfather, a constituent, who first explained his granddaughter’s dire situation in October 2021. Vanessa was diagnosed with a Wilms Tumor and had a kidney removed in Cuba to halt the spread of the disease. Doctors told Vanessa’s parents that they did not have the proper medication to save her life, as the cancer spread beyond her kidney. If she could not leave Cuba, there was no hope for her.
Rep. Salazar’s Miami Office officially requested humanitarian parole for Vanessa and her family, as she would be treated at Nicklaus Children's Hospital in Miami. After months of advocating on behalf of Vanessa, her application was finally approved, and she arrived in South Florida to immediately begin treatment.
A few days ago, Vanessa received the news that her cancer is now in remission. Upon hearing the good news, the Congresswoman visited Vanessa and her family at their home in South Florida. English- and Spanish-language media in Miami were there to cover the joyous meeting.
Read and watch some of the news coverage of the meeting below:
Original source can be found here.
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