Farrah Fawcett's cancer is still there, but so is her passion for life. "We went out for a long walk in the Alps yesterday, and I was more tired than she was when we got back," says pal Alana Stewart, who is with Fawcett as she gets treatment in Germany. "She is in great spirits, and the doctors are really happy with her progress."

The Charlie's Angels star, 60, is trying her best to "live a normal life," says Stewart, while pursuing alternative therapy for her anal cancer, which was diagnosed in September 2006. On Thanksgiving, the friends flew to a clinic in Bavaria for the last of three scheduled treatments to battle what Fawcett calls the "terrorist" inside her body. The clinic specializes in methods not practiced in the U.S., says Craig Nevius, Fawcett's friend and producer of her 2005 reality series Chasing Farrah, adding that the actress is angered by erroneous tabloid reports about her condition and treatment. Her treatment is both "medicinal and herbal," he says, and includes a vitamin regimen designed to rebuild the immune system in between low doses of chemo. "She doesn't have a lot of certainty. Her cancer is active. They've got it cornered and are trying to kill it."

Fawcett has also launched another project: She and Nevius are documenting her battle, videotaping doctor visits, medical procedures, encounters with paparazzi and private time with ex-boyfriend Ryan O'Neal and their son Redmond. Fawcett hopes the footage will become a TV series or special. "I've never understood why people are interested in anything I do—until now," she says in a statement to PEOPLE. "As much as I would like to keep my cancer private, I have a certain responsibility to those who are fighting their own fights who may be able to benefit from learning about mine."