Camino de Santiago

781 kilometers. One step at a time.

In 2023, I walked 781 kilometers from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port to Santiago de Compostela. What began as a personal moment of reflection became the first edition of Cammino per la Speranza, a journey for cancer research, supported by more than 160 people who donated, shared, and believed

Introduction

  • 781 km

  • 25 days

  • 160+ supporters

  • CHF 16,088 raised

  • 1 young researcher funded

Day 1 - The Pyrenees

The first step. A bit of fear. A lot of meaning.
The Pyrenees ahead - and a cause worth every step.

Day 10 - The Meseta

The most silent part of the Camino, and the one where inner noise gets louder.
Silence becomes clarity when the road is long enough.

Day 20 - Galicia

Everything hurts, but the rhythm of walking has become a rhythm of purpose.
The hardest steps are the ones that teach you who you are.

Day 25 – Santiago

I arrived after a 52 km day - on my birthday.
Reaching Santiago is not the end; it’s the beginning.

Why it matters

The funds were fully donated to the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB) in Bellinzona, allocated as a competitive grant for young postdoctoral researchers. The grant was awarded to a melanoma research project led by Dr. Tommaso Virgilio.

The project focuses on the sentinel lymph node, the first site where melanoma metastasis typically forms, aiming to develop therapies that activate the immune system directly within this node to prevent cancer spread.

The team has already developed a first drug candidate capable of stimulating a targeted immune response against melanoma metastases, with promising early results. Future work will advance this compound through the next stages of testing and explore additional candidates with similar mechanisms.

Watch the project video

How you can support

  • A first step


    CHF 5 / JPY 1,000

    Even the smallest contribution matters. Many first steps together can start a journey of change.

    Donate now

  • A set of samples


    CHF 50 / JPY 10,000

    Support the materials needed to test an innovative idea. With your help, a researcher can move from theory to practice.

    Donate now

  • A key experiment


    CHF 500 / JPY 100,000

    Enable a crucial experiment in cancer research. This level of support can generate the first results that open new directions.

    Donate now

  • A pilot grant


    CHF 5,000 / JPY 1,000,000

    Fund a young researcher’s project idea with a direct grant. Your support allows a postdoc to generate preliminary data and apply for larger grants.

    Donate now

  • Donate easily with TWINT

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Join the journey

I hope you’ll join us on this journey: by making a donation and/or by sharing this initiative with others.

Small steps. Real impact.

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