After listening to this audiobook, I realized I've been surrounded by cancer my whole life, including terminal cases -- my grandma, then my mom. More recently, one of my best friends had a breast removed. Then I got my own -- a squamous cell carcinoma on my leg. Easily removed, but still...

Cancer is among us.

I was hoping for a happy ending to the story, like a complete cure for all. But, no.

The section on smoking made me cringe, as the struggles with the tobacco industry were heating up in the 60s/70s, just when my foolish young self was smoking with my friends. (Fortunately, I was never addicted and quit young.)

One interesting idea from the author -- the way lung cancer can metastasize through the body, the smoking habit can "metastasize" through a social group, especially if the smoker is very outgoing and sociable. But, on the other hand, quitting smoking can also "metastasize" in a social group if the quitter is very sociable, leaving the loners on the periphery to continue smoking.

Like a lot of WWII veterans, my dad came home from the war with a pack of cigarettes in his pocket. The Army provided them for free. But, so the family story goes, his mother wouldn't let him in the door till he threw away his cigarettes. Good for you, Grandma! He never smoked again in his life.

The information on biology and genetics got a little tedious at times and I let my mind wander from the audiobook on occasion. But the personal stories were very engaging. The children's cancers were heartbreaking. And I found myself rooting so hard for these people and their families. (There but for the grace... so far!)

Recommended! ( )

The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer by Siddhartha Mukherjee covers the vast and myriad history of cancer including much of the development of medicine over the centuries. Mukherjee introduces cancer in terms of both its effects on humans and its resilience. He illuminates the path the myriad of treatments have taken over the years reminding the reader that science and medicine require much determination and a willingness to follow through and change direction as the research points in new directions. The Emperor of All Maladies reminds the reader of the benefits of working across borders and cultures to find answers. The history of cancer is rather dark and even eerie at times but leaves one feeling a grudging respect for its tenacity. Mukherjee explains how it adapts to human beings attempts to eradicate it. As Mukherjee draws direct lines between researchers and research findings from around the world that have brought us to where we are today in the treatment of cancer, he reminds us that cooperation often benefits us all more than isolation does. The Emperor of All Maladies puts cancer under the microscope for anyone whose life has been affected by cancer or might someday be affected by cancer, directly or indirectly. ( )

Лекар-онколог пише и�тори�та на раковите забол�вани�, разбирането за т�х и т�хното лечение от зората на човече�твото (доколкото ни е изве�тно) до наши дни.

Практиче�ки за 50 г. в началото на 20 в. ракът �е превръща от р�дко �рещано забол�ване във втората водеща причина за �мърт при хората, защото изтребваме инфекциозните забол�вани� и започваме да живеем до�татъчно дълго, за да развиват много от на� рак. За �ледващите 50 г. научните открити� и напредъкът в медицината превръщат рака от почти �игурна �мъртна при�ъда, в лечимо в повечето �лучаи забол�ване.

За �ъжаление, по-нататък в книгата не можах да �тигна, защото ме победи �тилът на пи�ане на автора. �е знам така ли пише човекът, или про�то е и�кал да направи книгата по-дебела, но непре�танните опи�ателни и�тории които разказва за в�ичко, което е бегло или дори �ъмнително �вързано � рака до�та бързо �тават �упер до�адни.

Извин�вай човек, наи�тина и�кам да прочета как е открита бо�та за бо�ди�ване на ракови клетки за да �е виждат под микро�коп, но �лънчевата утрин в ко�то млади�т учен изл�зал от възрожден�ката �и къща, по�троена от чичо му по поръчка на виен�ки търговец през 15 в. наи�тина не влиза в плановете ми, още по-малко и�тори�та на живота на �ами�т чичо, еле пък на виен�ки� търговец, жена му и детето им � кривоглед�тво и ишиа�.

Книгата има потенциала да бъде много интере�на, но...

It was OK, but I probably should have listened to the abridged version. I had hoped it would transcend its subject matter, and it does for brief moments. But the author obviously wanted to stick to what he knows, which is oncology. That's an admirable impulse, really, but in this case it didn't make for the most compelling read. ( )

Libro en detalle, mucho detalle, de la historia del tratamiento del cancer.

Si te interesa el tema, te va a encantar. ( )