Remarkable

This is a remarkable book - original, full of humanity, incredibly educational and very interesting. It traces a journey of long standing human effort to battle one of the most devastating diseases - cancer - the struggles encountered, unexpected finds as well as hard won victories. The author has conducted an impressive research into the topic, and his book is full of fascinating details, both scientific as well as personal touches. His use of language is makes it a real literary pleasure to read, even though the material is at times very complex (and on occasions little difficult to follow, especially the latter part), and the structure of the book is incredibly well thought-through, joining personal touch, with scientific information and philosophical reflections. One of the best non-fiction books I have ever read. However, as the book is full of scientific details to process, I personally would have found paper version easier to follow than audio version, although the narration was excellent and very clear.

9 people found this helpful

I had no idea how little I knew about Cancer

Brilliant book - I can't remember what prompted me to choose this but I am so glad I did. It is really three books - a gripping novel, a scientific history, and an ethical work out. Would you have tortuously prolonged the lives of children you couldn't cure? No? Then you would not have discovered the cure to childhood leukemia! Ouch. All the amazing hopes and setbacks that have been cancer research in the past 30 years must have been reported in the news, yet remained peripheral to my consciousness. Wonderful author-doctor to have brought it all to centre stage.

17 people found this helpful

Looking into the maw and seeing light

I chose this book on the recommendation of other reviewers but also because I decided I needed to make some sense of the vast body of information and mis-information about this disease. When people say in all seriousness that a certain celebrity could have cured his cancer by smoking cannabis, we need to take stock. This book was written with the objective of explaining to a cancer patient exactly what he is up against. The doctor writes with honesty and integrity. False hope is not given but as the history and scientific explanation develops, you are left with a sense of admiration for all that has been achieved so far and the feeling that we as humans have many powerful allies fighting for us. Cancer is not one disease but a group of diseases that share one characteristic. This is why it is so difficult to cure, but we should take comfort in the fact that we are alive today. In my lifetime cancer has moved for an almost certain death sentence to something that can be contained and lived with. We are indeed fortunate to live in a world where pain can be controlled and treatment is based on science and not dangerous quackery. There are many valuable lessons to be learned here (giving up smoking being key) and I think this is essential reading/listening for people who don't want to bury their heads in the sand.

6 people found this helpful

From an oncology pharmacist

A great book, both factual correct and fascinating. This is one of the few throughly researched books on cancer available on audible

1 person found this helpful

The Tragedy that touches us all

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Every one of us suffers from cancer at some time in our life: if we escape it ourselves, we have a close friend, or a family member, who goes through it.
Dr. Mukherjee explains what it is like to be a cancer specialist in modern medicine, and also takes us through an interesting history of the disease:- particularly its recent prominence and our limited success in dealing with it.
This is information which everyone will need at some stage. I would recommend the book to any friend, but especially those over 40.

What did you like best about this story?

Dr Mukherjee begins with thread of personal anecdote about his own medical specialisation, and what cancer 'means' to his patients.
He then develops an informative history of cancer research, and cancer treatments, but never loses sight of how every cancer is a private battle, and a personal tragedy.
Keeping non-fiction real this way is a rare skill, but a needed one.

What about Stephen Hoye’s performance did you like?

Stephen Hoye manages some very technical points and vocabulary very well (the book avoids specialist language as far as possible, but no further). Hoye's delivery of what is sometimes quite dense text manages to be slow enough to be clear, but brisk enough to stay riveting.
The topic could easily have been dry, and might have been disheartening. An excellent author and a skilled narrator keep the book interesting and surprisingly upbeat.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

This is a topic that needs to be absorbed slowly and thoroughly, and at one's own pace.
I can't imagine it as the basis for a successful ninety minutes entertainment.

1 person found this helpful

interesting but long winded

Interesting but long winded. The reader struggles to pronounce many medical terms. Full of Americanisms.

1 person found this helpful

Stunning

A tour the force that combines literature and science in an unseen way. The author captures the stories of the numerous patients involves in a beautiful and respectful way. Single a must read.

1 person found this helpful

Americentric and extremely long

This book has a lot of valuable information and flows easily for the first half but it is so long and filled with small details one cannot help but lose interest in it after a while. And the flow of the book isn’t near as well. It jumps from one thing to the next in one chapter it is talking about 1950s the next chapter about 1980s and goes back to 1960s in the next (this is an example I don’t actually remember what each chapter talked about there are so many of them). The book is also very Americentric and talks very little about the rest of the world. It is not really a biography of cancer but a biography of cancer in the USA. If you are interested in the subject, though, go for it, I learned a lot from it.

Excellent history of cancer and treatment

I expect many people will be attracted to this book if they, or someone in their family, is diagnosed with cancer. It’s a remarkable book by a very remarkable author. It tells the history of our understanding of cancer along with the evolution of treatments. Interspersed, yet only as general background, are snippets of stories of patients Dr Mukherjee had crossed paths with. This gives it a more human touch. Well worth a read.

American in every single way

Hyperbole, persistent war-evoking language and drama. Typical for Americans I guess but excellent book nonetheless