The bend has grown progressively worse, and the downward pressure is interfering with her lungs and heart.

But relief is on the way, thanks to a Salt Lake City-based humanitarian organization, Eagle Condor Humanitarian.

Later this month, a team of 20 American doctors, including two neurosurgeons and four orthopedic surgeons, will travel to Peru to perform a tricky surgery to straighten her spine.

One of the head surgeons is Brent Felix, who works at St. Marks Hospital and at the Salt Lake City Orthopaedic Clinic.

"I like helping people who cannot otherwise be helped because of their circumstances," Felix said. "The surgeons who go realize how blessed we are to have good health care in the U.S."

This will be the sixth expedition to Peru in two years for Felix and other spine experts. The work is made possible by a partnership between Eagle Condor and Innovasis, a Salt Lake City-based spinal implant manufacturer.

Their assistance allows the doctors to perform the surgeries with high-quality titanium bolts and screws, which are not available in the South American nation. Doctors often fill their luggage with the bolts and screws, which are worth about $100 each.

The Americans also team up with Peruvian surgeons, who are eager to learn the latest techniques and use more current equipment and tools, said Felix's uncle, Jan Felix, who is on Eagle Condor's board of directors.

"They are bright people," Jan Felix said. "When we walk into the [operating room] and bring those cases of screws and instruments and clamps, it kind of blows their mind."

The American and the Peruvian surgeons don't always speak the same language and are taught different approaches to care and healing, he said. But they have a mutual respect that makes the operating room a productive place, he said.

The Peruvian doctors choose candidates for the surgeries, selecting patients who are in constant pain and sometimes incapacitated but cannot afford expensive operations. The Peruvian doctors often have their own practices, but are required by law to spend a portion of their time in a public hospital treating patients who cannot afford health care.

Surgery is just one of Eagle Condor's initiatives in Peru. It is trying to get a refurbished CR X-ray machine into the country. It also provides business training, small-business loans and helps construct facilities that supply clean drinking water, sanitary bathrooms, greenhouses and

libraries.

cmayorga@sltrib.com