Diamond, John. Because Cowards Get Cancer Too: A Hypochondriac Confronts His Nemesis. New York: Times Books. 1998. Print
In the fact of such overwhelming statistical possibilities, hypochondria has always seemed to me to be the only rational position to take on life.
Consider, by the time you hit forty, your tattered heart has already thumped out a billion and a half beats: what can the chances be of any organ doing anything a billion and a half times and never making a mistake? Your 30 trillion or so cells have each replicated themselves a few thousand times: how could it possibly not be that a few of these cells would band together in that state of cytological anarchy that leads to cancer and death?
Consider anything the body does over and over, asleep and awake, consider the peril it invites every time it gets into a car, breathes a lungful -- 150 million times a year, not counting the hours of panicky hyperventilation--of sour and sickly city air, eats something too fatty or not fatty enough, and you are considering impending death.
Cancer permeates our lives today. We all know someone who currently has/had some form of cancer. Or maybe we are a "survivor" ourselves. Personally, I am in my fourth year of remission from Stage 4 large B-cell Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.
We know this to be a uniquely disquieting disease. It is at different times terrifying, painful, and overwhelming to experience personally or through a loved one. From my experience, cancer also is tiring, humiliating, nauseating, and alienating.
The unrelenting effect cancer has on the health and lives often bring on a feeling of powerlessness and depression to those lacking information about its mysteries. Cancer saps all combatants and permeates every aspect of life, including those awkward personal encounters experienced between people who are well and those who are sick.
Here is where the brilliant new book, Because Cowards Get Cancer Too comes in. John Diamond, a writer for the Times of London, was diagnosed in 1997 with a "small local [throat] cancer ... that could be scared off by a little radiation" according to his doctors. He was given a 92% chance of a complete cure. Over the next two years, however, things changed drastically as the cancer continued to grow.
Diamond opts to inform his reading public of his diagnosis and his journey with cancer via his usually "jaunty" weekend Times column. These columns covering two years along with some supplemental writing are gathered into Because Cowards Get Cancer, Too, offering an up-close-and-personal look into the world of cancer from a hypochondriac's perspective.
He knows nothing about cancer at first, so shares his quest for knowledge about the disease and treatment, his preconceived notions and fears, and his everyday progress and setbacks. Privy to his innermost thoughts, readers quickly are absorbed into his world, learning and experiencing right along with him as he faces as each new revelation or challenge.
His first visits to the radiation lab for treatment show him to be confident, joking with the staff, and sailing home if not refreshed, at least bolstered by confidence that he is one step closer to a cure. The odds are in his favor for a full recovery.
Eventually these trips take on a more subdued air. Soon, as his progress slackens, fellow radiation patients, medical staff, and Diamond barely exchange glances or words while waiting or undergoing treatment, each lost in the private feelings while battling the disease.
But Diamond is undaunted. Throughout the book, he maintains his sense of the absurd and clarity of vision. He describes awkward dialogs with reassuring well-wishers ("It will be fine, I know it will...You won't let it defeat you"), the British medial system, treatments he must perform for the rest of his life, losing weight ("Cancer. It's a great diet"), and his heaviest load: the loss of his sense of taste.
It is wryly written, clear, clever, and honest. While often very humorous, it is not a comic look at cancer. He does not mince descriptions of any aspect of his life, although realizes that readers do not need to examine all the gory details. He is telling his story in an unabashedly open manner: funny when he sees the humor, and fearful when he is afraid.
Diamond writes no truer lines than these below which I can identify with as someone who has experienced cancer:
Once you've had that diagnosis it stays with you for good. Like a lapsed religion, it may not be at the front of your mind all the time, but it is yawning away there at the back, just waiting for those moments when it needs to come forward and remind you that you are part of that community that touched death and touches it still, the community that has seen a doctor look at his boots and say, "I'm sorry, but . . . ''
Because Cowards Get Cancer, Too is a real look into an unknown world for many people. For those who have experienced cancer, they will nod their heads with recognition of shared experiences. And for those who are well, they will get a deeply personal look into the abyss of cancer, including elements of irony, humor, and wit.
Happy reading.
Fred
www.firstsentencereader.blogspot.com
Hitchens, Christopher. Mortality
Journalist documents his experiences and insights, both seriously and humorously, after he contracts cancer.
Mukherjee, Siddhartha. Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer
Extremely fascinating and detailed history of disease, from the earliest discovery and treatments to the current progress and drugs used in today's hospitals.
Schwalbe, Will. The End of Your Life Book Club
Mother and son bond while waiting for her cancer treatments, discussing books they have read and uncovering details about their lives. (previously reviewed)
Halpern, Susan. The Etiquette of Illness: What to Say When You Can't Find the Words.
Excellent suggestions and practical applications for talking (or not talking) to people with illness: how to say what you want without causing offense or embarrassment, what they want you to say, when to just remain silent. Very valuable examples and advice for well-intentioned friends and family of patients of all ages and illnesses.
