The Breast Cancer Life

Though clinical trials continue and research inches along, the majority of new texts on breast cancer aren't from the medical community but from the women who have been there and done that. Groovy TV ads with attractive older models in towels might hype prevention via Evista, but breast cancer is not just an older woman's disease. Young and old, here's how some gals took the cancer bull (metaphorically speaking) by the horns. Stock up for October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

A professor at UCLA's School of Public Health and breast cancer survivor joins with a UCLA Center for Culture and Health medical sociologist to reveal the long-term posttreatment symptoms that physicians fail to address. The authors interviewed 74 black and white women who share their concerns predominantly about the fatigue and "cognitive impairment (chemo-brain)" that linger as a result of chemotherapy and radiation. Women who have felt more isolated after treatment will welcome this validation that they are not alone. This NYU Press lead fall title is recommended for patient health/medical collections.

Wannabe author Baker wrote a novel about a woman who develops breast cancer. Shortly thereafter, the 45-year-old Wisconsin wife and mother was diagnosed with DCIS and underwent a lumpectomy. Cutting, crafty, and clearly a woman on a mission, Baker takes us along as her life turns upside down in so many ways. No graphic treatment specifics here, but an honest (and very funny, for the most part) approach to breast cancer. For all patient health collections.

This affordable paperback features 46 tales of how to confront, deal with, be angry about, face the financial burdens of, and go beyond a breast cancer diagnosis, written by the women themselves or their family members. Recommended for those who know what it's like and the thousands yet to join this less-than-exclusive club. You will be inspired.

This earnest, loving chronicle tells of a 34-year-old woman diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer who meets a guy, then finds another tumor and has a mastectomy, marries the guy, and, a year later, he develops non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Then, she has a recurrence. How the two persevere, keeping vigilant yet living life to the fullest, is the focus of this small book, based on Fitzpatrick-Nager's journal entries. For all libraries.

British nurse Hayward on the transition from professional caregiver to patient and each stop along the way.

In 16 chapters, from "How I Nurtured Myself" and "Balancing Work and Family" to "Healing" and "What It Means To Be a Survivor," hundreds of cancer warriors (men and women, well known and not) give up the secrets to dealing with this ubiquitous disease. Sidebars and boxes highlight ideas and coping tips. Breast cancer survivors include editor Kathy LaTour and singer Carly Simon. Editor Silver—another breast cancer survivor—is an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School. Oh, and Lance is here, too. For all patient health collections.

Consultant Bonner makes a career out of posing the right questions in order to elicit the most useful responses. Dividing her book into three large categories, she then lists under narrower subject headings ("About Your Initial Diagnosis"; "Before Breast Surgery") the ten best questions a patient should ask a doctor, with one Magic Question™, the one most people wouldn't think to ask, e.g., What is the most hopeful thing you can tell me about my diagnosis? Each chapter features context for the questions, sidebars with additional questions, a conclusion, and resources. Every woman diagnosed with breast cancer should read this excellent guide; highly recommended for all libraries.

A long-standing publisher on health issues has two additional titles patients can count on.

Called "the best of a recent flurry of books on breast cancer" in our starred review (LJ 8/92), this title, by a medical oncologist and a surgical oncologist, respectively, gets its fifth revision to update treatments, statistics, and resources in order to help patients manage their disease better. With a foreword by Jane Brody, this is still highly recommended.

Composer/music teacher, wife, and mother De Wys met the charismatic Carlos, an Ecuadorian healer and shaman, in Guatemala. "I can see inside your body," he told her. "Black smoke is trapped in your breast." Working with native plants and extracts, purgatives, and cleansing therapies, Carlos healed the indigenous peoples of his native Amazon. De Wys joined him in Ecuador, learning his methods and developing healing skills of her own. Her journey went far beyond breast cancer, depicted here in graphic detail. A fascinating path, but not for everyone. For alternative medicine collections.

Kelly stars in and White directs their play about Irish women and the effects of breast cancer on their lives. First set to the stage in Dublin in October 2007. For health collections and libraries where plays circulate well.

The following titles were reviewed in their original hardcover editions.

The wife of now New York Jets player Brett Favre scored a touchdown with the story of her life and her cancer journey. (LJ 9/1/07)

"Useful information; for practitioners and professional collections." (LJ 9/1/05)

"A moving and comforting book…. Consumer health libraries looking to develop psychological-support literature should definitely consider." (Xpress Reviews, 1/22/08; http://iamnotmybreastcancer.notlong.com)