Understanding Colon Cancer

Rating:
Summary: A terrific book
Review: "That was terrific!" While not what you would expect to hear after a colonoscopy, these were the first words out of my husband's mouth as he woke up from this somewhat inconvenient procedure a few weeks ago, which he and I had postponed as long as possible. Howls of laughter burst forth from the nurses and others present in the recovery room. Nonetheless, the words revealed my husband's shock and delight that the dreaded procedure began and ended so imperceptibly and so painlessly.

"That was terrific!" would also be my assessment of this little book. While there is nothing sexy about the prospect of reading a book about cancer, my middle age, my weight, my family history, and personal medical history nearly demanded that I inform myself. The previous reviews for amazon.com have focused repeatedly on Dr. Adrouny's gift for making a boring, technical, and frightening subject accessible to the non-medical public through very readable text, references, and glossary, as well as lucid diagrams. I would echo all of those comments nearly verbatim. Anyone in the field knows that teaching science to non-science majors is more difficult than teaching it to those committed to the subject. You have to engage them first, and then inform them. Dr. Adrouny succeeds brilliantly in his chapters such as "Who Gets Colon Cancer and Why," "The 'Look'...," "The 'Feel'...," the stages, the prognosis, the treatment, prevention and future of colon cancer.

For me, however, Dr. Adrouny's greater gift is the art of gentle persuasion. He informs but does not preach. Who wants to go to the doctor and be ordered to go and lose 30 pounds? My husband was spurred to action by Dr. Adrouny, and now it's my turn. My colonoscopy is in two months. When will you sign up? (As he points out, there is usually a wait.) Read the book while you are waiting. Meantime, I am wondering if perhaps Dr. Adrouny's next book should be, "Understanding Extra Pounds."

Reviewed by Sonia Russo
Gaithersburg, Maryland

Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Guide for Those of Us Who Are Not Physicians
Review: Adrouny does a great job explaining the ABC's of colon cancer.

This short--less than 150 pages--guide to colon cancer is accessible to those of us who are not physicians or familiar with healthcare terms. Adrouny patiently walks us through the basics of colon cancer: Who Gets Colon Cancer (men and women, too!); the look (signs) and feel (symptoms) of the disease; and the treatments and prevention.

This book is an absolute must for anyone who has colon cancer or anyone who is close to someone with the disease. The book also provides easy to read charts and drawings that I found very helpful.

Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Guide for Those of Us Who Are Not Physicians
Review: Adrouny does a great job explaining the ABC's of colon cancer.

This short--less than 150 pages--guide to colon cancer is accessible to those of us who are not physicians or familiar with healthcare terms. Adrouny patiently walks us through the basics of colon cancer: Who Gets Colon Cancer (men and women, too!); the look (signs) and feel (symptoms) of the disease; and the treatments and prevention.

This book is an absolute must for anyone who has colon cancer or anyone who is close to someone with the disease. The book also provides easy to read charts and drawings that I found very helpful.

Rating:
Summary: A Clear Understanding of Colon Cancer
Review: Dr. Adrouny is one of those rare physician/oncologists who is able to convert knowledge of his subject into words, phrases and thoughts that are fluid and understandable to the layman. Since colon cancer is the number two cause of cancer in the nation today, interest in the subject has heightened considerably and the book is a fast, yet comprehensive read for a wide audience. Having ordered and read the book before undergoing a routine colonoscopy I went into the procedure with a positive and informed outlook. Dr. Adrouny also analyzes the latest techniques in colon examinations including the merits of virtual colonscopies.

C. G. Elliott
Wailea, Hawaii

Rating:
Summary: A Clear Understanding of Colon Cancer
Review: Dr. Adrouny is one of those rare physician/oncologists who is able to convert knowledge of his subject into words, phrases and thoughts that are fluid and understandable to the layman. Since colon cancer is the number two cause of cancer in the nation today, interest in the subject has heightened considerably and the book is a fast, yet comprehensive read for a wide audience. Having ordered and read the book before undergoing a routine colonoscopy I went into the procedure with a positive and informed outlook. Dr. Adrouny also analyzes the latest techniques in colon examinations including the merits of virtual colonscopies.

C. G. Elliott
Wailea, Hawaii

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Source of Information about Colon Cancer
Review: My father was recently diagnosed with Colon Cancer and I decided to purchase a book about the horrible disease. This book by A. Richard Adrouny MD, a new author of medical books, provided me with facts and a new understanding of what my father is going through. This book will make you much smarter about this disease no matter what knowledge you have. I strongly suggest you buy this book to further increase your knowledge of one of the most common forms of cancer in America.

Rating:
Summary: A terrific book
Review: Richard Adrouny, MD is a personal friend of mine but I am not a patient of his nor a physician nor do I have any medical training. However, I am approaching 60. I do get annual checkups and prostate exams and I do worry about cancer.
Understanding Colon Cancer is as good a book on a critical medical issue as any lay reader could ever hope to find. Dr. Adrouny writes very fully and specifically about colorectal cancer, its development, theories regarding its prevention, and current treatment interventions. What makes his writing so valuable to cancer patients and others of us without medical training is its accessibility. He continuously offers clear, direct and perfectly understandable explanations so that the interested reader can truly grasp the meaning of necessary medical terms and their significance. When he mentions sigmoidoscopy he explains that the procedure is an examination of the inner rectum and lower colon. When he refers to adenomatous polyps he specifies that a polyp is a growth from a mucous membrane and an adenoma is a benign growth from a glandular tissue. Continuously, he shares with us state of the art medical understanding in terms non-physicians can grasp. And in the course of treatment for a potentially life-threatening disease understanding is comfort.
Colorectal cancer screening as an annual event isn't a high priority for most men or women. When Dr. Adrouny explains that 15% of all cancers can be detected by a simple digital rectal examination, the momentary inconvenience of this act of diligence seems a small price to pay confirming our health status. Similarly, fecal occult blood testing, barium enema, and endoscopy all offer evaluations that could spare us suffering and save our lives.
While reading this book I wondered if Dr. Adrouny didn't perhaps edit his own writing by asking himself "So what?" every paragraph or so and then took the time to make clear the importance of his points to his general audience.
While reading this book, I could imagine a colon cancer patient returning home after seeing his own oncologist and grabbing for Dr. Adrouny's book by way of understanding his own physician comments.

Rating:
Summary: Understanding of Colon Cancer in Plain English
Review: Richard Adrouny, MD is a personal friend of mine but I am not a patient of his nor a physician nor do I have any medical training. However, I am approaching 60. I do get annual checkups and prostate exams and I do worry about cancer.
Understanding Colon Cancer is as good a book on a critical medical issue as any lay reader could ever hope to find. Dr. Adrouny writes very fully and specifically about colorectal cancer, its development, theories regarding its prevention, and current treatment interventions. What makes his writing so valuable to cancer patients and others of us without medical training is its accessibility. He continuously offers clear, direct and perfectly understandable explanations so that the interested reader can truly grasp the meaning of necessary medical terms and their significance. When he mentions sigmoidoscopy he explains that the procedure is an examination of the inner rectum and lower colon. When he refers to adenomatous polyps he specifies that a polyp is a growth from a mucous membrane and an adenoma is a benign growth from a glandular tissue. Continuously, he shares with us state of the art medical understanding in terms non-physicians can grasp. And in the course of treatment for a potentially life-threatening disease understanding is comfort.
Colorectal cancer screening as an annual event isn't a high priority for most men or women. When Dr. Adrouny explains that 15% of all cancers can be detected by a simple digital rectal examination, the momentary inconvenience of this act of diligence seems a small price to pay confirming our health status. Similarly, fecal occult blood testing, barium enema, and endoscopy all offer evaluations that could spare us suffering and save our lives.
While reading this book I wondered if Dr. Adrouny didn't perhaps edit his own writing by asking himself "So what?" every paragraph or so and then took the time to make clear the importance of his points to his general audience.
While reading this book, I could imagine a colon cancer patient returning home after seeing his own oncologist and grabbing for Dr. Adrouny's book by way of understanding his own physician comments.