Customer Reviews

Adult Leukemia: A Comprehensive Guide for Patients and Families

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Barbara Lackritz has written the most comprehensive and well-documented resource on adult leukemias. I wish I had been given access to this information upon diagnosis four years ago, and have bought copies for friends and family, and am recommending it to my physicians. A lot of information about adult leukemias is now available online, but GrannyBarb's book is the essential resource for discovering where to go, who to see, how to cope, and what these diseases mean. Patients, family, and attending physicians can all benefit from this marvelous work by a victorious CLL patient that has been reviewed by the top hematologists/oncologists and other technical experts.

Whether you're the patient (like I was) or family, friend or caregiver to one, its one of the first things most people do when diagnosed with leukemia. You look for more information. You'll find lots of books about cancer. But very few specifically about adult leukemia. GrannyBarb has certainly put it all together for us. And you can benefit by as much or as little as you choose to use. There is no other book like this one. I've looked. I only wish it were written five years sooner. It would have saved this CML survivor a lot of wasted time and energy searching for factual information, authoritatively written in patient-speak--the language we need in order to understand better to recover quicker.

Written from the viewpoint of a Leukemia survivor, this is a very comprehensive and readable guide that not only tells you everything you need to know about this disease, but also is chock-full of resources available elsewhere. The author has filled this book with the answer to virtually every question someone could have. While readable and intended for the non-medical person, the book will meet anyone's needs who desire to learn about the technical aspects of the disease from the chemistry of the blood to treatment options. This book is a must for anyone who has been diagnosed with Leukemia, or who has a loved one with the disease. It would also be helpful for someone who is involved with care of leukemia patients.

Having been dx'd with AML I wanted a comprehensive but understandable text to keep near by and refer to as the situation warranted. At first I found it helpdul but then I had more complex questions and the answers were not there. Specifically I needed a better explanation of all the CD's and their effect , affect, I never know which to use, on my leukemia. I also needed much more information on blasts and what different levels indicate. I felt that side effects of chemo and drugs needed to be addressed more thoroughly, and GVHD certainly needed much more space.
I would say this is a fine starting point but does not have all the answers. Oh, I found the anecdotes nothing but space wasting

This book will be a great help to me in trying to absorb all the information I have been getting from the CLL support list. I looked all over for a book like this after being diagnosed in Dec. 1998 but couldn't find one.It is full of easy to understand and very helpful information on every situation that might arise with the disease.

When my husband was diagnosed with leukemia I searched high and low to arm myself with knowledge. This comprehensive guide is a good first step. Grannybarb and Art's website is also excellent and filled with first hand accounts of the journey to recovery. Best wishes for good health.

First, a note: I knew Barbara Lackritz AKA GrannyBarb. She was a tireless advocate for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. She spoke at numerous patient's meetings, presented to groups of doctors, and fielded many, many questions from caregivers and patients concerning this disease.

The book GrannyBarb wrote is an excellent overview of CLL. It includes an overview of the disease, symptoms, potential treatments, possible side effects, and what to expect when the disease progresses. It is very well written and covers more than the basics one might pick up from the Web. This is one strength of the book: it distills all that is known about the disease and covers ground that is probably available on the Web, but can be very easily overlooked. GrannyBarb puts all of it together in an interesting and easy to read book.

Since GrannyBarb is no longer with us, sadly, the book may not be updated. With the pace of research into this and other leukemias in high gear, there are now more treatments available, and in clinical trials, than when she wrote the book. On the other hand, pretty much all of the mainstream treatments that a patient is likely to run into are covered in the book.

Highly recommended. If you are a patient, or a caregiver, there is no better book than this to give you the 'lay of the land'.

BTW, to the reviewer who was disappointed because AML wasn't covered in this book, well, that's because the book isn't about AML! Geesh! I suppose I could complain that the book didn't cover model railroading, either, but it isn't a legitimate complaint, to my mind.

If you have CLL, get this book. If you have AML, get a different book!

I have a friend who has a family history of this disease. He wanted the most current information so I ordered it for him and he found it very valuable.

Doc

This book has been so helpful. My best friends daughter was diagnosed 2 years ago and this book has helped me help them a lot. Thank you.

This is a wonderfully thorough and easily understandable book. And while lots of the information was familiar, it really helped to have so many aspects collected in one place. "Granny Barb" seems to cover all of the key areas one would want to know about leukemia.