SAN DIEGO — Eli's doctor broke the news to him in 2014: he had cancer.
"She said, 'if you don't do this, you are going to die' and just like it happens in the movies, my knees just buckled under me and I just fell to the ground on the beach and started crying, and I thought 'oh my god, I am going to have to do this,'" said Eli.
Five years ago, Eli Hans fought for his life to beat a rare and aggressive form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The odds of surviving were frightening, yet he says through reconnecting deeply with his intuition and delving into tons of research, he discovered life-saving, holistic and integrative strategies. Eli balanced conventional and complementary treatments with out-of-the-box tools.
We met for our interview at his home in La Jolla.
"You didn't want chemotherapy [because] that sounded too scary, so you renamed the whole process something else," I said.
"Yes," said Eli. "'Love juice.' I made little sticky labels that said 'love juice' and I told all of the nurses at the infusion center [to] please only refer to it as 'love juice' and they were wearing their hazmat suits and bringing it and saying 'here is your love juice.'"
Eli had a 10% chance of survival, but to his surprise, he did just that.
"Look at me. I am alive talking with you," said Eli.
Instead of a cancer survivor, Eli calls himself a "cancer thriver."
"Not only did you beat cancer, [but] you became a cancer coach?" I asked.
"Yes, I became a cancer coach," he said.
He offers holistic retreats to Mexico to guide others through what can be a terrifying journey.
"It's scary because it's the most human thing that you can do - to really be there for someone who is facing the scariest facet of their life," said Eli.
"And what is this about the Cha Cha?" I asked. With a laugh he responded, "Ha, ha, the Cha Cha. Yes, the Cha, Cha."
Eli's oncologist, Dr. Marin Xavier, asked him to dance the Cha Cha at a charity event. The close bond they shared went from doctor-patient to more of a sister and brother relationship.
When life gives you a second chance, you not only dance the night away, you dance your life away. Xavier was off saving more lives and couldn't join us for the interview, but the show had to go. So, Eli and I danced the Cha Cha.
"I want you to think of me as your brother," I said as we danced. "Ah, yes, definitely," Eli responded.
Eli transformed himself into a multi-passionate entrepreneur, motivational speaker and workshop leader, certified cancer wellness coach and certified "Passion Test facilitator." He says he feels healthier and more fulfilled than ever while on a personal growth and spiritual path.
For more information on Eli Hans and his program called Heal Cancer, click here,