Desiree Kuring didn't feel sick when she checked into a South Florida hospital almost two years ago to have an ovarian cyst removed. The twenty-six year old dancer from Miami Beach had great energy, her characteristically strong-willed wit - and no reason to doubt that the routine operation would end her slight abdominal discomfort.

It didn't. The forty-five minute procedure stretched to six-and-a half-hours as doctors removed tumor-riddled ovaries, uterus, fallopian tubes, and parts of her abdominal wall.

Desiree awoke the next day, drowsy with anesthesia, in the arms of her boyfriend, Andrew Berke. "Everything will be all right," Andrew reassured her, stroking her cheek.

He meant every word. Indeed, Desiree's path of healing led her from the initial death-sentence - a diagnosis of severely metastasized ovarian cancer - to a healer who has helped her choose to live. In that moment, standing over his girlfriend in the recovery room, Andrew saw clearly how Desiree could, in turn, help others make the same choice. "You have cancer," he told her gently. "But everything will be okay."

A look of confusion spread across her face, then he added, "Will you marry me?"

The Long Journey

Desiree has never been one to mourn the living. She greeted the diagnosis and the round of chemotherapy that followed with impassive determination. With the help of Chinese herbs, she managed to get through chemo with limited nausea. She and Andrew then embarked on the infinitely more satisfying task of planning their wedding.

Slowly, though, her telltale signs of fatigue derailed them. The tumors were back. With only a few weeks to go, the couple called off the beachside wedding ceremony, opting for a modest exchange of vows in their apartment instead.

Chemotherapy had failed, but where were the viable alternatives? Some therapies simply cost too much; others, says Desiree, seemed far-fetched. "My story is a testament to how long you might have to look to find alternative treatments that work for you," Desiree says. "So many people want answers immediately, but healing can be a long process."

With little money but a lot of hope, they traveled to New York City to meet a renowned specialist in gynecological Traditional Chinese Medicine. The doctor refused to treat Desiree, fearing liability for what he felt was her imminent death. Despondent, Desiree and Andrew sought care under another alternative oncologist back in South Florida. This doctor prescribed an expensive regimen of intravenous Vitamin C, ozone baths, and herbs. The couple sold their car to afford the treatments, but the cancer stayed. Finally, the oncologist suggested that Desiree return to chemotherapy.

During the second round of chemo, Desiree dropped fifty-five pounds; her hair fell out in clumps; she all-but-quit sleeping for the constant pain the tumors caused; and far worst of all, her determination started to erode. Bankrupt, the couple moved in with Desiree's parents and enrolled in hospice care. "All I could think was that I wanted my mother. I just wanted the pain to end. I wanted to fade away." For Andrew, these days were unendingly dark. He'd quit working as a piano teacher, months prior, to care for Desiree full-time. "My life was completely wrapped up in her survival," he says. "I felt that if she were to die, I would soon follow."

One final last-ditch round of chemo obliterated Desiree's immune system. She received a blood transfusion, and suffered from severe cycles of abdominal cramping. Andrew could no longer bear witness to her pain. On a well-timed recommendation, Andrew helped Desiree into her wheelchair and they flew across the country to consult with master healer Bo-In Lee. Little did they realize they would not be returning home.

A Place to Heal

Desiree's healer and teacher recently told her that when she first arrived at the New Life Health Center in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts, "her soul had already separated from her body." She couldn't even climb the steps of the Center. Still, from the first moment she entered it, she knew she could heal there.

World-renowned acupuncturist Master Bo-In Lee did not initially undertake to help Desiree conquer death, as other doctors had. "He tried to prepare me for that natural and beautiful journey," Desiree recalls. He treated her for pain and instructed her in some Zen Buddhist approaches to dying. "I learned to see death as an extension of life. This made me feel totally calm. For once, I could let go of fear," says Desiree.

Within days, she felt "her soul return to her body." Master Lee felt it, too. He started to treat her with a powerful combination of herbs and acupuncture. He identified foods to replenish her denuded system. Most importantly, she says, Master Lee's counseling and philosophy continued. He prescribed daily meditation and deep breathing. Within weeks, Desiree was climbing the Center's stairs several times a day, she no longer relied on her wheelchair, and she was starting to gain weight. The tumors' growth had ceased.

Today, life has returned to both of the Berkes. Andrew has found piano students in Boston, and the couple has started to plan for their future together. They've established a medical trust fund to help pay for Desiree's ongoing treatments. As Desiree recovers more and more, she hopes to help others seek alternative therapies. "One of the greatest things we can do is herald the news that cancer doesn't have to be a fatal disease," says Andrew.

After eight months under Master Lee's care, no one would guess that the exuberant woman - with her cropped hair, elfin grin, and hearty laugh - is surviving one of the most virulent, most incurable cancers known. Her healing does not come from a bottle of pills, or through an IV drip, or even in an acupuncturist's needle. It comes from her open heart and her open mind. "Every individual holds the key to their own healing," says Desiree. "I hope that my struggles can help others recognize that."