Samantha, Brazil

My name is Samantha Leal. I am 48 years old, a mother of two and a stepmother to two more. I am a journalist and the founder of OncoClothes, a brand of accessible clothing for cancer patients.

My first breast cancer diagnosis came in 2015. I underwent a radical mastectomy and, right at the beginning of treatment, I became pregnant—although I only found out four months later. That was a moment of great anguish, even more than the diagnosis itself, both for my health and for my child’s.

When he was born, we were faced with the news that he had congenital clubfoot. With a lot of resilience, we began his treatment with casts and resumed my own treatment as well.

Just when everything seemed to be going well, in 2022 I experienced a recurrence with metastasis to the lung. We restarted treatment with targeted therapy and hormone therapy.

I was in therapy and taking antidepressants, but I did not feel whole. Because of this anguish, I wrote a letter to the Vatican telling my story, hoping to receive an audience or a blessing from the Pope. And the positive response came. I needed to go to Italy.

In an act of madness, I took all my savings and went. Since I couldn’t go alone, my mother came with me.

The first stop was Milan. It wasn’t on my wish list, but for some magical reason, God wanted me to go there.

And at the Duomo of Milan, at the feet of an image I had never seen before, I began to cry. Intrigued by this sudden feeling, I went to read whose image it was. It was Saint Agatha, protector of women with breast cancer. That’s when I truly broke down.

When I left, my mind was racing, and in my little dream notebook I began to sketch what would become Santa Agatha OncoClothes. The garments feature zippers at both necklines and on the sleeves to make exams and treatments easier.

I thought that if I had this need, others might too. And after a lot of research, here it is.

I hope these blouses embrace everyone the way they embraced me. Gratitude.

And for those of you wondering: what about the Pope? Although I didn’t get close enough to take a photo with him, I was close enough to receive his blessing. It was magical!