Ana’s Story
Blind Courage,
Clear Vision
The story of Ana Mendez Zamora — blind physician, cancer survivor, advocate, and founder of Blind Courage.
Blind Courage is what it takes to endure the crudeness of human suffering. Clear Vision is what it takes to find meaning in life.
As a 30-year-old blind woman and four-time cancer survivor facing leukemia for a fifth time, I feel humbled by the potential of the human spirit.
If, at 24 years of age, someone had asked me if I thought I could endure acute lymphoblastic leukemia, chemo-resistant acute myeloid leukemia, three relapses of my first leukemia, and suddenly waking up one day blind with no light perception, I would have told them, “No way. Never.” As a 24-year-old medical doctor, if someone had asked me if a patient could endure all of that, I would have said, “Extremely unlikely. I don’t think so.”
Now, in my early 30s, after six years of fighting leukemia, more than six regimens of chemotherapy, two bone marrow transplants, CAR-T therapy, and three clinical trials, I am still willing to fight for my life for a fifth time, with more Blind Courage than ever before.
October 4, 2019, the day I was first diagnosed with leukemia, and December 26, 2020, the day I woke up blind with no light perception, marked pivotal moments in my life. After 25 years of waking up to daylight, I was now greeted by darkness every morning. The months that followed were the worst and most frightening of my life. Not used to this reality, a panic attack always followed. The beeping of the monitors and my hands gripping the bed rails reminded me that I was alive — but blind. What came after this was excruciating sorrow and confusion. I still had my life, which I held dearest, but I would never again see the faces of those I loved the most. “Is it worth it?” That question crossed my mind every morning, but then I heard it: the voices of my loved ones greeting me as they entered the room and the touch of their hands. Love was still out there, giving meaning to my life and clearing my vision. Immediately, I had my answer: “Yes, it is worth it.”
To rebuild my life, I had to overcome too many obstacles with virtually no assistance and find new passions and goals. Through YouTube tutorials, I taught myself the basic skills needed to navigate life as a blind person. Learning to use screen readers, white canes, assistive technology, techniques to organize my clothes, and building a life centered on memory in order to function in society were among the many obstacles I overcame. To make the challenge even harder, I had to rebuild my life while being repeatedly interrupted by relapses of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. These meant treatment with chemotherapy, a second bone marrow transplant, three clinical trials, and CAR-T therapy.
To my astonishment, with time and perseverance, I was able to practice again as a blind physician, complete a Master of Science, be admitted to Master of Public Health programs at Johns Hopkins, Harvard, Yale, Columbia, and Brown, and be accepted into a Post-Doctoral Fellowship Program at the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health.
At the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, widely regarded as the best school of public health in the world, I am the second Costa Rican in at least 21 years to complete an MPH. Moreover, I am the only one to earn a Sommer Scholarship Award, be part of the Sommer Scholars Program, and be nominated and soon inducted into the Delta Omega Public Health Honor Society. I am also one of two Delta Omega 2026 inductees from the entire Bloomberg School of Public Health to receive the Dr. Timothy Baker Award for International Development.
However, these achievements have not come without extraordinary effort, determination, and commitment. I grapple endlessly with frustration, but I fight back with even greater tenacity and perseverance. I push the boundaries of accessibility wherever I go, advocating for the inclusion of blind people. Currently, I am completing my MPH, with an expected graduation in late May, while simultaneously receiving chemotherapy to fight cancer for a fifth time, after another relapse of acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
As a medical doctor and a candidate for a Master of Public Health, I like to be guided by evidence. However, the complexity and uniqueness of my case leave me without evidence to stand on, only the judgement of experts. Most importantly, as a Catholic, I hope and pray for healing, but I know it is not my choice. It is His.
Blind Courage is what it takes for me to endure blindness and leukemia for a fifth time. Clear Vision is what it took for me to understand that my loved ones are the living personification of meaning in my life — the ultimate form of love.
The Blind Courage Logo:
A Person, Ultimately a Human Being
In 2019, while she was still sighted and lying in bed, Ana scribbled on a piece of paper to create a symbol that reminded her of her meaning in life. She needed to draw a person because, for Ana, people were the ultimate form of love. Love gave Ana’s life meaning.
Over time, the symbol evolved alongside Ana’s story. What began as a personal reminder became the foundation of Blind Courage. To Ana’s astonishment, the logo came to represent both her own journey and the people she hoped to help.
At its core, the Blind Courage logo is a person, ultimately a human being. It is meant to inspire people to embrace the potential within themselves, serve as a tribute to the indomitable power of the human spirit, and represent love through the image of a person.
The logo also holds hidden layers of Ana’s story. The cancer ribbon, turned upside down, represents survival and defiance. The eye represents blindness, the deepest scar cancer left on Ana. When turned 90 degrees, the logo evokes the Ichthys, also known as the Christian fish symbol, representing God’s promise to Ana in Isaiah 43:1-4.
Finally, the logo’s minimalism reflects one of the lessons cancer taught Ana: few things are truly essential in life.
“Life among my loved ones is always going to be worth it.”
Ana Mendez Zamora
Declared terminally ill, I flew to the United States in the middle of a pandemic to join a clinical trial. When that too failed, I made one final decision: a bone marrow transplant that most physicians considered too risky. My family and friends launched a fundraiser that went viral. On August 24, 2021, I received the transplant. Miraculously — against all odds — it worked.
But the road wasn’t over. In January 2023, a biopsy revealed a relapse in my left arm nerve — a finding reported only a handful of times in medical literature. I returned to the United States for a clinical trial at the National Institutes of Health. I won that battle too.
Then in March 2024, during what should have been a routine follow-up, the leukemia was back — for the fourth time. I chose the most aggressive path: a second bone marrow transplant. My doctors were worried. My body had already endured nearly five years of treatment. I found the courage I needed in my memories, and I took the leap.
The turning point
Adversity became purpose
The second transplant worked. And while recovering, I did something that seemed impossible: I applied to the world’s top schools of public health. I was accepted to Johns Hopkins, Harvard, Yale, Columbia, and Brown — with merit scholarships from all four.
On June 28, 2025, I walked through the doors of the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins — ranked the best school of public health in the world — as a recipient of the prestigious Sommer Scholarship. I had turned my adversity into my greatest purpose.
Before everything changed
A life built on love and dreams
Long before the diagnoses, I was a daughter, a sister, a student with a clear vision for her future. I grew up surrounded by family, laughter, and an unwavering belief that I could make a difference in the world through medicine.
That foundation — built in the simplest, happiest moments — is what carried me through the darkest ones.
Professional bio
Ana Mendez Zamora
Ana Mendez Zamora is a physician, cancer survivor, advocate for people with visual impairment, and the founder of Blind Courage. She is a four-time leukemia survivor, double bone marrow transplant recipient, and the first blind physician in Costa Rica’s public healthcare system.
She is currently completing her Master of Public Health at the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University, where she received the Sommer Scholarship Award — one of the most prestigious leadership scholarships in the program. Her work focuses on cancer prevention and health advocacy, with a mission to reduce suffering from both cancer and blindness globally.
Ana is an inspirational speaker whose story has reached audiences across the United States and Latin America. She is the host of the Blind Courage Podcast and founder of a platform dedicated to inspiring people to transform adversity into purpose.
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© 2026 Blind Courage by Ana Mendez Zamora. All rights reserved.