Lisa's Story

Rating:
Summary: A book with wide appeal
Review: As a woman surgeon who treats women for breast cancer, I was intrigued by this book. I found it delightful! It treats a serious subject with just the right touch. More importantly, it is loaded with insights into breast cancer, the way patients and health care professionals interact, and the reaction of family and friends. The front part of the book reprints the story of Lisa, who discovers a lump in her breast, copes with diagnosis, treatment - including surgery, chemotherapy, and reconstruction, and gets on with her life with a good sense of humor. The back part of the book has one of the best selections of resource material for breast cancer patients and their families that I have ever seen. This is not just a book for women - it's a book for their husbands and their families and friends. Finally, it's a book that medical students and physicians should read - it holds up a mirror to the medical profession and laughs gently at our shortcomings. Carol Scott-Conner MD PhD, Professor and Head, Department of Surgery, University of Iowa College of Medicine.

Rating:
Summary: a cutesy/powderpuff look at primary, early-stage bc
Review: Like so many breast cancer books out there, this one fuels one of the great myths of breast cancer today: Lisa survives the disease and they all live happily ever after. This and many of the texts on breast cancer tend to gloss over the reality: that no one is ever really safe from the possibility of their cancer returning. And if it does, there's really nothing funny about it.

If, like me, you stumbled upon this one while trying to find books on advanced breast cancer...don't waste your time or money. They don't deal with that reality here.

To their credit, the book does include an extensive list of references -- though only one dealt with the subject I am trying to research and it, as well as a few other Web sites I tried, were out-of-date and/or the information wasn't available.