I, an atheist scientist, believe in miracles

Peering into my microscope, I saw a deadly leukemic cell and decided that the patient whose blood I was testing must have died. It was 1986 and I was examining a large pile of "blind" bone marrow samples without being told why.
Given the malignant diagnosis, I figured it was for a lawsuit. Perhaps a grieving family was suing the doctor for a death for which nothing really could be done. The bone marrow told a story: the patient did chemotherapy, the cancer went into remission, then she had a relapse, she did another treatment and the cancer went into remission for the second time.

I later learned that she was still alive seven years after her troubles. The case was not for a trial, but was considered by the Vatican as a miracle in the dossier for the canonization of Marie-Marguerite d'Youville. No saint had yet been born in Canada. But the Vatican had already rejected the case as a miracle. Her experts claimed that she had not had a first remission and relapse; instead, they claimed that the second treatment had led to the first remission. This subtle distinction was crucial: we believe that it is possible to heal in first remission, but not after a relapse. The Rome experts agreed to reconsider their decision only if a "blind" witness had again examined the sample and discovered what I saw. My report has been sent to Rome.

I had never heard of a canonization process and I could not imagine that the decision required so many scientific considerations. (...) After some time I was invited to testify in the ecclesiastical court. Concerned about what they might have asked me, I brought some articles from the medical literature with me about the possibility of surviving leukemia, highlighting the main steps in pink. (...) The patient and the doctors also testified in court and the patient explained how she had addressed d'Youville during the relapse.
After more time, we learned the exciting news that d'Youville would be sanctified by John Paul II on December 9, 1990. The nuns who had opened the cause of sanctification invited me to participate in the ceremony. At first, I hesitated not wanting to offend them: I am an atheist and my Jewish husband. But they were happy to include us in the ceremony and we could not pass on the privilege of personally witnessing the recognition of the first saint of our country.
The ceremony was in San Pietro: there were the nuns, the doctor and the patient. Immediately afterwards, we met the Pope: an unforgettable moment. In Rome, Canadian postulants gave me a gift, a book that radically changed my life. It was a copy of the Positio, the entire testimony of the Ottawa miracle. It contained hospital data, transcripts of testimonials. It also contained my report. (...) Suddenly, I realized with amazement that my medical work had been placed in the Vatican archives. The historian in me immediately thought: will there also be any miracles for past canonizations? Also all healings and diseases cured? Had medical science been considered in the past, as it has been today? What had the doctors seen and said then?
After twenty years and numerous trips to the Vatican archives I published two books on medicine and religion. (...) The research highlighted striking stories of healing and courage. It revealed some unsettling parallels between medicine and religion in terms of reasoning and goals, and showed that the Church did not put science aside to rule on what is miraculous.
Even though I am still an atheist, I believe in miracles, surprising facts that happen and for which we cannot find any scientific explanation. That first patient is still alive 30 years after being touched by acute myeloid leukemia and I am unable to explain why. But she does.