Brazilian charity drives raise funds for oncology patients and vulnerable families

The third edition of the Arraiá da Misericórdia was held on 18 July in Itabuna, Bahia. Organized by Santa Casa de Misericórdia, the forró‑style benefit concert featured singer Sinho Ferrary and other regional acts. Tickets cost R$ 100 and the proceeds are earmarked for the requalification of the hospital’s oncology ward, which serves SUS patients from 89 municipalities in southern Bahia.

In the Rio de Janeiro region, the Oncomed oncology network continued its annual “Campanha do Agasalho”. Collection points were set up at its five facilities – three in Niterói, one in São Gonçalo and one in the city’s South Zone – to gather coats, blankets and other warm clothing for the Associação dos Colaboradores e Amigos dos Pacientes Especiais (Acape), a nonprofit caring for 16 psychiatric patients. The drive also supports other social projects, such as the Casa de Apoio à Criança com Câncer Santa Teresa.

State health units in São Gonçalo, Itaboraí and surrounding areas also joined the coat‑drive effort, installing donation bins at hospitals and UPAs to provide winter clothing for people in social vulnerability.