Tri-ing to find a cure

July 6, 2012

Arieana Carcieri of Coventry will be competing to help battle cancer this weekend in the Aquaphor New York City Triathlon. Submitted Photo.

COVENTRY — Having overcome cancer twice in her life, a 24-year old Coventry resident is determined to help find a cure for the disease by raising money through various athletic events.

Arieana Carcieri explained that three months after she graduated from the University of Rhode Island in 2010 she was diagnosed with Stage two Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.

This type of cancer, which affects a person’s white blood cells, can develop in the lymph nodes, spleen, bone marrow, blood, or other organs.

Carcieri said she underwent chemotherapy for six months and the cancer had disappeared before the final treatment.

She explained that after beating the disease, she made it her priority to raise money for the cause.

She said the first fundraising event she participated in was a 100 mile bike event called America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride in Lake Tahoe, Calif.

“But then just three months after being diagnosed the first time, the cancer came back,” she said. "I then went through more chemotherapy, had a stem-cell transplant, radiation and blood transfusions.”

With the various treatments Carcieri went through, she has been in remission since Feb. 1.

On Sunday, July 8 she will be competing in the 2012 Aquaphor New York City Triathlon where she and her eight team members from Team in Training (TNT) will be raising money towards the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

The 12th annual half marathon hosts more than 3,000 athletes who will have to complete a 1.5 km swim in the Hudson River, a 40K bike ride on the Henry Hudson Parkway and a 10K run in Central Park.

“I had no swimming background before this so I literally had to learn how to swim,” Carcieri joked.

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