Good News! Andrea Pedro Francisco was detained on February 5, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Andrea suffers from a large ovarian cyst, which causes extreme abdominal pain and poses a serious risk to her reproductive health. She did not receive adequate medical care while in detention. She was released from detention on June 4 and is now at home with her family and able to undergo surgery.
NO FURTHER ACTION IS REQUESTED. MANY THANKS TO ALL WHO SENT APPEALS.
Andrea Pedro-Francisco, a Guatemalan woman seeking asylum, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Minneapolis, Minnesota on February 5, 2026. She is currently detained at the El Paso Service Processing Center in Texas. Andrea has a large ovarian cyst, that she was scheduled to have removed on February 11. Lacking adequate medical care in detention, Andrea’s health is rapidly deteriorating, causing her extreme abdominal and lower back pain, among other symptoms. We demand Andrea’s immediate release, and until that happens, immediate access to adequate healthcare to prevent further health deterioration and possible death.
Dear Field Office Director Marisa Flores,
I am concerned that Andrea Pedro-Francisco, a Guatemalan citizen seeking asylum in the United States, was detained on February 5, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She was transferred to the ERO El Paso Camp East Montana detention facility in El Paso, Texas which is more than 1,800km away from her home. In March, she was subsequently transferred to the El Paso Service Processing Center (EPSPC).
Andrea suffers from a large ovarian cyst, which causes extreme abdominal pain and poses a serious risk to her reproductive health. Her condition requires a biopsy to determine whether the cyst is cancerous, as well as surgery to remove it. Prior to her detention, Andrea had been scheduled to undergo surgery on February 11 to have the cyst removed, but her detention by ICE prevented the procedure from taking place.
Andrea was gravely ill when she arrived at Camp East Montana and had to be hospitalized. The doctor who treated her confirmed that she needs surgery but stated that he would not perform the procedure because she is in immigration detention. Instead, the doctor prescribed Andrea medication for her symptoms, but she never received it.
It is truly alarming that Andrea has not received adequate medical care at either detention facility and that she still awaits surgery. Andrea requires urgent medical care that she can only adequately receive outside of detention. Without proper care and urgent surgery to remove the cyst, Andrea is at risk of serious medical complications, including loss of her ovary, infertility, and the development of other serious and preventable conditions.
I implore you to ensure that Andrea is immediately released and provided with the urgent medical care she desperately needs.
Sincerely,
[YOUR NAME]
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