This Ukrainian woman beat cancer. But her fight to free her captive husband isn’t over

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — “You have no moral right to die.”

That’s what Olha Kurtmalaieva told herself as she lay in intensive care, her body shutting down after emergency chemotherapy. Her cancer had progressed to Stage 4, meaning it had spread to other parts of her body and was now incurable. The pain was unbearable. The doctors weren’t sure she’d make it through the night.

She was facing death alone in the Ukrainian capital, while her soldier husband was in Russian captivity in the more than three-year war.

“If I die now, who will bring him back?" Olha thought to herself. "He has no one else in Ukraine.”

Against the odds, she learned she was in remission last year. But even after multiple prisoner exchanges, including one that freed over 1,000 people, her husband, a Ukrainian marine, remains a captive.

She hasn’t given up. At nearly every exchange, she’s there waiting, one of hundreds of Ukrainian women still trying to bring home their husbands, sons and brothers.

“He’s everywhere in my life,” Olha said. “His (photo) is on my phone screen, in my wallet, on the kitchen wall, in every room.”

Day and night, questions circled in her mind: “What can I do to speed this up? What did I do today to bring him home?”

Olha was just 21 when she learned she had cancer. It was Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Stage 2. The tumors were growing but were still treatable.

“At that age, you’re thinking: cancer? Why me? How? What did I do?” she recalled. Her husband, Ruslan Kurtmalaiev, promised to stay by her side through every round of chemotherapy.

When they met, in 2015, he was 21 and she was just 15. “It wasn’t love at first sight,” she said with a wide smile, eyes sparkling.

Their attraction blossomed gradually that summer in Berdiansk, in what is now the Russian-occupied zone in the southern Zaporizhzhia region. Three years later, as soon as she turned 18, they wed.

When they first met, it was not long after Russia illegally seized Crimea, Ruslan's homeland, in 2014, and also invaded eastern Ukraine. Ruslan, a professional soldier, had already served on the front line.

From the beginning, Olha understood that life as a military wife meant constant sacrifice — long separations, missed milestones, and the uncertainty of war. But she never imagined that one day she would be waiting for her husband to return from captivity.

When she describes Ruslan, tears well up in her eyes. “He’s kind, he has a heightened sense of justice,” she said.

“For him, it was a matter of principle to return home and bring our Crimea home,” she said, a loss she fully comprehended only after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

“Only when I lost my home did I fully understand him."

Olha managed to complete only two sessions of chemo before the full-scale invasion. When her long hair began to fall out, she shaved her head. When she sent Ruslan a photo, he didn’t hesitate: “God, you’re so beautiful,” he told her.

Later, he made a confession.

“He told me, ‘Yeah, I saw your hair falling out in the mornings. I gathered it all from your pillow before you woke up — so you wouldn’t get upset.’”

At the time, she believed that losing her hair was the worst thing that could happen to her. But soon after, she discovered what real tragedy meant.

Olha never made it to her third round of chemo.

She stayed in Berdiansk, which was seized by Russian forces in the early days of the war. Cut off from medical care and waiting for news of Ruslan, she quietly began helping the Ukrainian military from inside occupied territory.

“There was no oncology department in Berdiansk. There was simply nowhere to get treated,” she said. “But honestly, I didn’t even care that much at the time.”

In early April, she discovered that Russians had captured Ruslan and others from his marine forces’ unit.

“I started to cry, but then I stopped myself. I thought, ‘Wait. Is this something to cry about? He’s alive. That’s what matters.’”

At the time, she said, their idea of Russian captivity was naive. Only later did it become synonymous with torture, starvation and medical neglect.

Olha left Berdiansk in June of 2022.

“Walking through your own city, but feeling like it’s someone else’s — that’s horrifying,” she said. “There were Russian flags everywhere. I kept Ukrainian music in my headphones. I was scared my Bluetooth might disconnect, and they’d kill me. But it was worth it.”

She spent several months moving between cities, helping to organize peaceful rallies to raise awareness about Ukrainian POWs. Eventually, she settled in Kyiv. Throughout that time, she paid little attention to her cancer diagnosis, even as her health steadily declined.

Then her condition worsened sharply. Her temperature spiked to 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit).

“When the doctor looked at my test results, she said, ‘How are you even walking?’” she recalled.

Her lymphoma, left untreated during occupation, had progressed to Stage 4. Emergency chemotherapy began — and it hit her hard.

“My second round of chemo was disastrous,” she said. She developed an intestinal blockage, couldn’t digest food, and was rushed to intensive care. “It was morphine all night from the pain. I couldn’t stand. I couldn’t sit. They moved me like a dead body.”

In the hospital, she overheard doctors say her condition was inoperable. Then a nurse came to her bedside and spoke plainly.

“‘We’re going to try to restart your system manually,’ she told me. ‘But if it doesn’t work, you may not wake up tomorrow. You must help us however you can.’”

It was the thought of Ruslan, still in captivity, that helped Olha survive.

In April 2024, five days before her birthday, Olha was told she was in remission. Now she juggles civic activism with running an online cosmetics store. She co-founded the Marine Corps Strength Association, representing over 1,000 Ukrainian POWs still in captivity.

In close contact with former prisoners, Olha gathers fragments of information about Ruslan — she has had only one phone call with him in the past three years. She sent several letters but never received a reply.

Like an investigator, she pieces together every detail. That’s how she discovered that Ruslan had broken ribs and a crushed arm during regular beatings, according to the testimony of one of the POWs.

As part of the psychological torture, he is made to listen to the Russian national anthem repeatedly. A Crimean Tatar and a Muslim, he is given only Christian religious texts to read — not the worst form of pressure, Olha acknowledges, but still a clear violation of his faith.

One day, a Russian guard struck him eight times on the head with a hammer.

“The other prisoners said they had never seen bruises like that in their lives,” she said.

Ruslan spent months in solitary confinement. And yet, somehow, he remains emotionally strong.

“He tells the others about me,” Olha said, her voice softening. “One of the guys who came back said (Ruslan) told him: ‘She’s your age, but she’s got a business, she’s strong, she’s fighting for us. She’ll get us out.’”

That story stayed with her.

“I can’t afford to be weak. How can a marine’s wife be weak?” Olha said. “What matters is that he knows I’ll keep fighting for him — until the very end."

Associated Press writers Vasilisa Stepanenko, Evgeniy Maloletka and Volodymyr Yurchuk contributed to this report.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Olha Kurtmalaieva rolls a placard before going for prisoners exchanges between Ukraine and Russia in Chernihiv region, at her apartment in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Olha Kurtmalaieva, center, participates a meeting for captive Ukrainian marine soldiers at the Independence square in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Friday, May 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Olha Kurtmalaieva collects her classes before going for prisoners exchanges between Ukraine and Russia in Chernihiv region, at her apartment in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Olha Kurtmalaieva stands in a park in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Olha Kurtmalaieva participates a meeting for captive Ukrainian marine soldiers at the Independence square in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Friday, May 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Olha Kurtmalaieva waves to Ukrainian marine soldiers sitting in a bus after a POWs exchange between Russia and Ukraine, in Chernyhiv region, Ukraine, Saturday, June 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Family photos of Olha Kurtmalaieva and her husband Ruslan are seen at their apartment in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Olha Kurtmalaieva works with a computer sitting on a sofa at her apartment in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Olha Kurtmalaieva shouts to Ukrainian marine soldiers after a POWs exchange between Russia and Ukraine, in Chernyhiv region, Ukraine, Saturday, June 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Olha Kurtmalaieva stands in a park in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Olha Kurtmalaieva holds a placard for Ukrainian marine soldiers coming out from a bus after a POWs exchange between Russia and Ukraine, in Chernyhiv region, Ukraine, Saturday, June 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Olha Kurtmalaieva speaks via a phone while having a breakfast at her apartment in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

U.S. President Donald Trump says Iran has proposed negotiations after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic as an ongoing crackdown on demonstrators has led to hundreds of deaths.

Trump said late Sunday that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports mount of increasing deaths and the government continues to arrest protesters.

“The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night.

Iran did not acknowledge Trump’s comments immediately. It has previously warned the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.

The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has accurately reported on past unrest in Iran, gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran cross checking information. It said at least 544 people have been killed so far, including 496 protesters and 48 people from the security forces. It said more than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests.

With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.

The Latest:

A witness told the AP that the streets of Tehran empty at the sunset call to prayers each night.

Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”

Another text, addressed “Dear parents,” which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.

The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.

—- By Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Iran drew tens of thousands of pro-government demonstrators to the streets Monday in a show of power after nationwide protests challenging the country’s theocracy.

Iranian state television showed images of demonstrators thronging Tehran toward Enghelab Square in the capital.

It called the demonstration an “Iranian uprising against American-Zionist terrorism,” without addressing the underlying anger in the country over the nation’s ailing economy. That sparked the protests over two weeks ago.

State television aired images of such demonstrations around the country, trying to signal it had overcome the protests, as claimed by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi earlier in the day.

China says it opposes the use of force in international relations and expressed hope the Iranian government and people are “able to overcome the current difficulties and maintain national stability.”

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Monday that Beijing “always opposes interference in other countries’ internal affairs, maintains that the sovereignty and security of all countries should be fully protected under international law, and opposes the use or threat of use of force in international relations.”

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz condemned “in the strongest terms the violence that the leadership in Iran is directing against its own people.”

He said it was a sign of weakness rather than strength, adding that “this violence must end.”

Merz said during a visit to India that the demonstrators deserve “the greatest respect” for the courage with which “they are resisting the disproportional, brutal violence of Iranian security forces.”

He said: “I call on the Iranian leadership to protect its population rather than threatening it.”

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman on Monday suggested that a channel remained open with the United States.

Esmail Baghaei made the comment during a news conference in Tehran.

“It is open and whenever needed, through that channel, the necessary messages are exchanged,” he said.

However, Baghaei said such talks needed to be “based on the acceptance of mutual interests and concerns, not a negotiation that is one-sided, unilateral and based on dictation.”

The semiofficial Fars news agency in Iran, which is close to the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, on Monday began calling out Iranian celebrities and leaders on social media who have expressed support for the protests over the past two weeks, especially before the internet was shut down.

The threat comes as writers and other cultural leaders were targeted even before protests. The news agency highlighted specific celebrities who posted in solidarity with the protesters and scolded them for not condemning vandalism and destruction to public property or the deaths of security forces killed during clashes. The news agency accused those celebrities and leaders of inciting riots by expressing their support.

Canada said it “stands with the brave people of Iran” in a statement on social media that strongly condemned the killing of protesters during widespread protests that have rocked the country over the past two weeks.

“The Iranian regime must halt its horrific repression and intimidation and respect the human rights of its citizens,” Canada’s government said on Monday.

Iran’s foreign minister claimed Monday that “the situation has come under total control” after a bloody crackdown on nationwide protests in the country.

Abbas Araghchi offered no evidence for his claim.

Araghchi spoke to foreign diplomats in Tehran. The Qatar-funded Al Jazeera satellite news network, which has been allowed to work despite the internet being cut off in the country, carried his remarks.

Iran’s foreign minister alleged Monday that nationwide protests in his nation “turned violent and bloody to give an excuse” for U.S. President Donald Trump to intervene.

Abbas Araghchi offered no evidence for his claim, which comes after over 500 have been reported killed by activists -- the vast majority coming from demonstrators.

Araghchi spoke to foreign diplomats in Tehran. The Qatar-funded Al Jazeera satellite news network, which has been allowed to work despite the internet being cut off in the country, carried his remarks.

Iran has summoned the British ambassador over protesters twice taking down the Iranian flag at their embassy in London.

Iranian state television also said Monday that it complained about “certain terrorist organization that, under the guise of media, spread lies and promote violence and terrorism.” The United Kingdom is home to offices of the BBC’s Persian service and Iran International, both which long have been targeted by Iran.

A huge crowd of demonstrators, some waving the flag of Iran, gathered Sunday afternoon along Veteran Avenue in LA’s Westwood neighborhood to protest against the Iranian government. Police eventually issued a dispersal order, and by early evening only about a hundred protesters were still in the area, ABC7 reported.

Los Angeles is home to the largest Iranian community outside of Iran.

Los Angeles police responded Sunday after somebody drove a U-Haul box truck down a street crowded with the the demonstrators, causing protesters to scramble out of the way and then run after the speeding vehicle to try to attack the driver. A police statement said one person was hit by the truck but nobody was seriously hurt.

The driver, a man who was not identified, was detained “pending further investigation,” police said in a statement Sunday evening.

Shiite Muslims hold placards and chant slogans during a protest against the U.S. and show solidarity with Iran in Lahore, Pakistan, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

Activists carrying a photograph of Reza Pahlavi take part in a rally supporting protesters in Iran at Lafayette Park, across from the White House, in Washington, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Activists take part in a rally supporting protesters in Iran at Lafayette Park, across from the White House in Washington, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Protesters burn the Iranian national flag during a rally in support of the nationwide mass demonstrations in Iran against the government in Paris, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)