Description
The true story of the war on cancer from one of its generalsCancer touches everybody's life in one way or another. But most of us know very little about how the disease works, why we treat it the way we do, and the personalities whose dedication got us where we are today. For fifty years, Dr. Vincent T. DeVita Jr. has been one of those key players: He has held just about every major position in the field, and he developed the first successful chemotherapy treatment for Hodgkin's lymphoma. As one of oncology's leading figures, DeVita knows what cancer looks like from the lab bench and the bedside. The Death of Cancer is his illuminating and deeply personal look at the science and the history of one of the world's most formidable diseases. In his hands, even the most complex medical concepts are comprehensible.Cowritten with his daughter, the science writer Elizabeth DeVita-Raeburn, The Death of Cancer is also a personal tale about the false starts and major breakthroughs, the strong-willed oncologists who clashed with conservative administrators (and one another), and the courageous patients whose willingness to test cutting-edge research helped those oncologists find potential treatments. With historical depth and authenticity, DeVita reveals the true story of the fight against cancer. The Death of Cancer is an ambitious, vital book about a life-and-death subject that touches us all.
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"The true story of the war on cancer from one of its generals In The Death of Cancer, Dr. Vincent T. DeVita Jr.--former director of the National Cancer Institute, former physician-in-chief at Memorial Sloan Kettering, director of the Yale Cancer Center, former president of the American Cancer Society, and developer of the first successful chemotherapy treatment for Hodgkin's lymphoma, which first demonstrated that advanced cancers of a major organ system in adults could be cured by chemotherapy--provides a personal history of one of the greatest science stories of our time, covering our fight against cancer from a man who's seen it all. But this is more than a history; it's also a work of advocacy. Despite declining mortality rates, DeVita argues, America's cancer patients are being shortchanged by timid doctors, misguided national agendas, and compromised bureaucracies. He gives readers an eye-opening look at the strengths and weaknesses of America's most prestigious cancer centers, showing how patients can use this information to their advantage. Though we're rapidly approaching total victory over cancer, he contends, we need to do more to synthesize our progress and help doctors put it into practice. This is an ambitious book about a life-or-death subject, a vital entry into the cancer literature genre. With historical depth and authenticity, DeVita brings important information to readers about what cancer is, how best to fight it, and what we still have to learn"--
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