![]() |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Amazon.com Textbooks Store
Shop the Amazon.com Textbooks Store and save up to 70% on textbook rentals, 90% on used textbooks and 60% on eTextbooks. |
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images? |
I was given a copy of Dr. Love's book after I was diagnosed with breast cancer, and it became invaluable to me. Frequently I had to set it aside for a short time because the information was so frightening, but cancer and its' treatment is a frightening experience.
The information she provided allowed me to ask important questions and make good decisions about the choices available to me. I had good doctors, but they did not go into some of the details I needed to know such as: odds of recurrence with lumpectomy vs. mastectomy; which chemotherapy drugs produced what side effects; why radiation?
She also provided information that allowed me to better understand the idiosyncrasies of breast cancer and my particular prognosis.
Breast cancer research is producing such promise with new drugs and procedures, that there is no way a book can be published with "the latest" information. Still, I HIGHLY recommend Dr. Love's book to ALL women--whether they are interested in breast feeding or are facing difficult decisions about breast cancer treatment options.
The most serious flaw is that it uses outdated survival and mortality statistics that do not take into account the current treatment protocols. The result is unnecessary fear and panic. There are no good statistics on ten-year survival rates, because the current treatment protocols have not been in use for ten years. The development of changes in chemotherapy, antibodies, and hormonal therapy is changing so rapidly that for at least the next twenty years there will be no good ten-year survival rate statistics. Even the five-year statistics do not give the current picture. Dr. Love only gives one paragraph's worth of guidance on how to interpret the statistics. This can result in resignation and fear, just when one should be preparing to live well and fight hard.
The second flaw is that Dr. Love's frustrations with the imperfections of medicine and the slowness of change of the medical system come through. She spends lots of detail on rare complications of surgery, and rare possibilities of recurrence. She agonizes over the fact that any lives are lost. I want that knowledge and compassion in your team. I do not want to sift through this detail when I need to get information on which to base decisions.
The final difficulty is not a flaw, but a portion of the book. As a newly diagnosed survivor, I wanted to know what I should do next, what will happen next, and how I can detect any recurrences. Ido not need an entire section for women who have recurrences. Fewer than half of women who have breast cancer get recurrences, and right now, I need to concentrate on what I can do to prevent one, not how soon to arrange for hospice in case of recurrence.
Instead, try John Link's Survival Manual, or, best of all, Your Breast Cancer Journey from the American Cancer Society
|