To Madam Teh May Yin's (above) family and friends, she's a 'walking miracle'.

For the last 17 years, the 62-year-old has been surviving on only coffee, water, watered-down milk and sweets. She can't stomach anything else.

Even finely-ground solid food makes her throw up. She takes vitamin supplements in liquid form a few times a week.

Madam Teh was diagnosed - and treated successfully - for three different types of cancer from 1985 to 1990: throat, cervical and nose cancer.

The doctors who treated her in the past declined to comment on her present condition and why she can only tolerate this liquid diet.

She has consulted several visiting specialists, and even a psychiatrist, but to no avail.

It all started in 1985 when she discovered a lump in her throat, and was diagnosed with throat cancer. 'I was told I only had four months to live, and I lost 6kg in a month because of the stress,' recalls Madam Teh, an accountant who retired last April.

'My children were at such a tender age then, the youngest was only three, and the eldest, 11. I was determined to fight for survival to be with them.'

She turned to her religion and family to pull through this difficult period. After some time, the lump just disappeared. Her doctor called it a miracle.

Tragedy struck again, however, and she was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 1987, not long after her recovery. 'My doctor was very patient, and kept trying different types of medicine for one that would work against the cancerous cells,' said Madam Teh.

'We tried it for a year without any success before we finally found one that worked.'

After cancer of the throat and the cervix, cancer struck a third time. 'When I sneezed, it looked like fireworks had erupted in my tissues,' said Madam Teh, 'I went for a check-up and was told I had nose cancer. ' It was the most painful of the three.

Despite what she has been through, Madam Teh brims with the energy of a teenager and kept up an active lifestyle throughout her ordeals.

She continued working at her full-time job and volunteered at the Singapore Soka Association (SSA), a Buddhist organisation.

'Hardly anyone knew about my illness except for my family and close friends,' said Madam Teh.

She must have kept a brave front because she was experiencing such intense pain that she had to take 10 to 12 strong painkillers daily.

'The pain would start from around 2am and last till 6am in the morning, and was so excruciating that I could not even walk from the bedroom to the living room without fainting ,' said Madam Teh.

'Every part of my body ached, from the tip of my head to my toes. This went on for about two months.'

In 1990, new operating technology became available and she went for a nose operation in February. She was told, however, that the risk after the operation remained high, and that she could suffer from massive internal bleeding.

Five months later, she found that she had difficulty swallowing her food.

Worse, she found herself involuntarily throwing up if she took any solids: a few spoonfuls of porridge could make her throw up about four times. Numerous intestinal and stomach specialists could not diagnose the problem. Madam Teh even started consulting visiting overseas specialists at the NUS research centre, but to no avail.

'In the end, they recommended me to a psychiatrist, who after a three hour session, declared me probably saner than he was,' joked Madam Teh.

Dr John Low, consultant, department of radiation oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore, said that nose cancer patients are normally treated with radiotherapy which could bring about the side effect of swallowing difficulty.

Oncologist and Mind Your Body columnist, DrAng Peng Tiam, medical director of Parkway Cancer Centre, said that it is possible to survive on a liquid diet like Madam Teh's.

'We need fluids (she drinks coffee and water) and calories (from the sweets) to survive. However, she will eventually get protein deficiency,' he said.

But for now, Madam Teh is determined to get on with life. 'I learnt never to blame myself or others for my condition, but to look forward', said the ever-optimistic Madam Teh.

She professed to have been very 'hot-tempered' when she was younger, but her perspective on life changed after her brushes with cancer.

Wanting to share with others how she overcame her ordeal, she is an active volunteer with the Tsao Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to eldercare and dealing with ageing.

She spends several hours a week counselling people with problems, especially cancer patients who sometimes need someone to talk to.

'Family members can be very supportive, but they might not understand what the cancer-stricken go through,' she said.

'I only hope I can lessen the pain by sharing with them. I often tell them, if I can overcome it all, so can you. I want to spread the message that being old, or terminally ill should not stop you from living life to the fullest, and to always have hope.'

Only once in the interview was there a hint of melancholy, when Madam Teh lamented softly, 'Anytime, I could go'. Her husband, Mr Ho Toon Teck, 65, a retired teacher, has been by her side through the high and lows of the 35 years they have been married.

'She has a lot of determination, and is a strong- willed and independent woman,' he said. It wasn't easy getting through all these obstacles, but the family is always supportive and standing by her.'

E-mail: taratan@sph.com.sg

This story was first published in the Mind Your Body supplement on Feb 27, 2008.