Customer Reviews

100 Questions & Answers About Brain Tumors, Second Edition

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I truly enjoyed the second edition,"100 Questions and Answers about Brain Tumors." I read it in 2 days. I could not put it down. My husband's cancer was not a brain tumor, but there is so much information that I could identify with. Dr. Virginia Stark-Vance presents her information in a way a lay person can understand. By reading this book, you will be better prepared to understand and make good decisions on your medical care.

I thought ML's inserts were wonderful. It added such a reality to the book. Some of the feeling that she experienced are the same for other cancer patients. I loved her quote, "If you can not change the outcome of a situaton do not worry about it." I wish I could live by it and believe.

Anyone that is dealing wth cancer could benefit from reading this book!

I hope this review portrays a good overview of the book and that the reader finds it very informative. "100 Questions and Answers about Brain Tumors" is a very informative book if you or a loved one is diagnosed with a brain tumor. Virginia Stark-Vance and M.L. Dubay wrote this book. M.L. Dubay was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2000 and so she gives the patients perspective of living with this misfortune.

My Opinion of the Book
I thought that this book was very well written. My sister has a brain tumor, which is the reason I started reading it, and it turned out to be very informative. I really enjoyed reading M.L. Dubay's story. She experienced this first hand and her story is amazing. All throughout the book she discusses her experience and thoughts based on the topic that is having questions answered.

Sections of the Book
Basically the book is split up into parts that each pertains to a different topic. There are eleven parts to the book and they are as follows: The Basics, Diagnosis and Pathology, Neuroimaging, Neurosurgery, Radiation Therapy, Chemotherapy and Other Drug Therapy, Clinical Trials for Brain Tumor Patients, Complications of Brain Tumors and Their Treatment, Medications Used in Brain Tumor Treatment, Living with a Brain Tumor, and Taking Control of Your Future. The Basics part addresses what a brain tumor is and what the cause is along with the anatomy of the brain. Diagnosis and Pathology discusses the symptoms that are associated with a brain tumor and also how to read the pathology report. Neuroimaging section looks at the ways to locate and see the tumor by performing MRI's and CT scans. Neurosurgery explains the neurosurgical procedure and just answers questions about surgery as a whole. The Radiation Therapy part tells the reader what radiation therapy is along with what the side affects are. The Chemotherapy and Other Drug Therapy addresses what chemotherapy is and also how to lessen the side affects associated with it. It also discusses what the other options are for drug therapy. The Clinical Trials for Brain Tumor Patients discusses what a clinical trial is and how to get involved in one. The part about Complications of Brain Tumors and Their Treatment addresses what the patients can expect after surgery and treatment. The Medications used in Brain Tumor Treatment section does just that, discusses what medicine is used. The part of the book on Living with a Brain Tumor asks questions to help the patient cope with living with a brain tumor. The final chapter, Taking Control of Your Future discusses supports groups and staying organized with all of the paperwork.

As stated in the title, this book contains virtually every question that anyone who is faced with having a brain tumor or knowing someone who has one would have. The questions are followed by very well thought out and detailed answers. This book was a very easy read. Often time's books that are written about complicated, medical information are difficult to understand and comprehend but this book was very reader friendly.

Layout of the Book
I loved how the book was written. The idea of a question and answer is genius. When someone finds out that they have something like a brain tumor, they of course will have many questions. A book like this will clear up a lot of their concerns and questions. I also really liked that the book was split up into so many parts. This made it much more organized and easy to find certain topics. The titles of the different sections of the book are a very good summary of what that section will be about, one can get the gist of the section.

M.L Dubay's Story
As I said before, I really liked that the authors incorporated a real patients story within the text. There is nothing like hearing a patient's perspective on the whole matter and trying to relate to it. Her story really touched my heart and it really makes you step back and take a look at the life you have. The person with the tumor is not the only person that is affects; it also has an impact on family and friends. I personally fell like I can understand what is going on and the process of the matter better if I hear a real story and then things get put into perspective. Sometimes just reading words do not really make sense until you get an example, in this case, a story.

My Favorite Section
If I had to pick one section of the book, it would The Basics part. This is the first part of the book and it is full of very useful information. Many people do not know the anatomy of the brain and that is an important concept to know being diagnosed with a brain tumor. The book does a good job of not making it too complex, it just tells you what you need to know. This section also gives some stats of how many people are diagnosed with brain tumors. This can be comforting for the patient or for family and friends to know that they are not alone.

Quotes From Book
"M.L. Dubay, who was diagnosed with an anaplastic oligodendroglioma in July 2000, provides the patient perspective in a way that only someone who is herself affected by this disease can - that is, with great insight and practical, first-hand experience."

"About 1.2 million adults in the United States are diagnosed with cancer every year, and of those, 52,200 will have a primary brain tumor."

"Most people who are diagnosed with serious illness grapple with fear and anxiety...If you aren't afraid, then you aren't normal!"

"Having faith in God and believing I would be taken care of also helped to ease my fears."

In conclusion, I found the book to be very informative and extremely well written. It helps people who are battling this condition to feel that they are not alone. This book covered every type of question that one would ask if he/she were diagnosed with a brain tumor. The story of M.L. Dubay's real life experience really helps you to relate to the topic and the material that is covered in the book.

I would definitely recommend this book to people who are suffering with this unfortunate circumstance. Whether it is you are the patient or a family or friend, this book will help a lot. It gives you an idea of what the process is you are about to endure and lets you know that you are not alone. It is a very easy read so you do not have to be worried about not understanding the material. Even if you do not know anyone who has a brain tumor, it is still a very interesting topic and worth reading about.