Cancer-Chemotherapy Books

Spectacular, but not a quick read! If you or someone you know has cancer, then this is a must read. The author did a marvelous job of chronicaling the research path to great discoveries for cancer. Unfortunately, Dr. Folkman passed away last month but after reading this book you will have a better understanding of the legacy of important research he left behind and how it is continuing by the minute

This book is great gives a good understanding of the research community and the search to understand angiogenisis.

This book is a very well done documentary of the trials Dr. Folkman went through to have his ideas on cancer treatment considered. His ideas are now becoming the new approach, offering much needed hope for patients and their families. For anyone interested in cancer, this book is worthwhile.

This book by Robert Cooke is incredible! Mr. Cooke is able to explain to the average layperson the medical concepts of angeiogeneis conceived by the most under-valued person of our time: Dr. Judah Folkman. Dr. Folkman is to cancer what Salk was to Polio! Personally, Dr. Judah Folkman is my hero! A real hero, deserving of the Nobel Prize....and I don't speak lightly. I am a cancer patient that has recently learned that my cancer (thought was beat) has advanced to my lungs. The ONLY therapy for me is in an ANGIOGENESIS drug therapy program for a drug currently in study and labeled as "PI-88." I am just so confident this drug will work. I am the only patient with my type of cancer cell (adenoid cystic carninoma), so I am a little bit more of a lab rat for this program.

God Bless Dr. Folkman and h is incredible perserverance! His story should be a movie----a tale better than SeaBiscuit! He is my SeaBiscuit!

LHH

Chances are someone close to you has succumbed to the ravages of cancer, while you and the medical establishment could only sit by and watch the process reach its inevitable conclusion. The good news is, for nearly 40 years, Dr. Judah Folkman has been pursuing a cure for cancer -- or at least a way to fight tumors more effectively than chemotherapy or radiation -- that only until very recently has garnered serious attention. Dr. Folkman's theory is called angiogenesis, the process by which cancer cells emit an agent which triggers the growth of blood vessels to feed the growth of the cancer itself. For years Dr. Folkman's idea was basically scoffed at as the flailings of an amateur researcher, but Cooke shows how Dr. Folkman has perservered -- while maintaining his brilliant career as a physician -- and eventually, through a slow accumulation of experimental evidence, as well as the discovery of several antiangionesis agents, turned opinion around. Throughout this engaging and fascinating retelling of Folkman's journey, Cooke also provides an eye-opening account of the workings of academia, medical research, and their relationships to those Orwellian biotech companies you keep hearing about. The science is clear and vivid, the battle to defeat cancer inspiring, and the promise of victory -- thankfully, finally -- just around the corner.

Really gorgeous, very easy reading and I was translating some parts to my mother. It is a pleasure reading it, so excuse my enthusiasm, but I am sure it deserves to be translated into Spanish.

this book is simply the best on this subject!.it discover all the types of vitamin e:the first 4 polimers and the other 4 polimers known as tocotrienols,but the main issue remains the potent d-alpha tocopherol.absobtion is very important and it is discovered in details including ways to improve it.how vitamin e operates in immunity,and in autoimmune diseases such as:cancer,aids, arthritis, and also asthma,and inflamation.there is also a superb outstanding chapter that showing new researches with a great promise about neurological diseases such as: altzheimer,huntington,parkinson,lou- gehrig's disease,heart disease cataracts,macular degeneration, and other diseases are discovered and explain not only the mechanisms of disease, but also how the vitamin e is operate in those diseases and suggested approximate doses recommandations. diabetes,crohn- disease ,cystic- fibrosis, and many other diseases and illnesses are well explained very simply.as a orthomolecular nutritionist that do treats those dd (degenerative- diseases)wich actually are ortomolecular diseases because they have a vitamin and or mineral dependency because of a bad genes, and or submolecular nutrient\s, i can tell you that the knoledge that represent in this wonderful book is very much scientific and it is very valuable. i realy think that this book concerning vitamin e is the vitamin e bible!

Excellent book and good web references; nice to have medical terms well explained - a rare thing in popular books.

This is one of the best books I have ever read. The author is a fantastic teacher. He is able telling complex things so everybody can understand it. He is also very balanced in his teachings. If you are looking for a book about vitamin E, there are no better alternative.

Thank you you for such a wonderful book, The Vitamin E Factor. I have learned so much I am again reading it for the third time. I only wish that every person would read this book. When you have an updated version I would hope you would let me know. Again, Thanks for such a well written book. Yes, some of the information was repetitive, but sometimes we need to read it several times to absorb all the information. Debra M. Kowalski, Dayville, Oregon

When I was diagnosed with cancer, I went to the library and checked out every book they had on cancer treatment (and that's a lot of books). But this is the only one I bought, and I refer to it often. It's more focused than many of the other books - it just deals with treatment, and doesn't talk about specific drug regimens, etc. But it does a great job, talking about side effects and how to treat them, the experience of going through radiation and chemo, and also subjects like meditation and family support. I also appreciated the chapter on testing and screening. This book is easy to read, but doesn't skimp on the details - I really appreciated that. I'd recommend this book to anyone undergoing cancer treatment.

because these are my doctors. This book was published as I finished treatment and a local paper told me about it. I have a copy that I will keep and one I had co-workers who fought cancer in any form write a message which I gave to the nurses at work to add to their bookshelf. These men know their subject. I am so pleased and blessed they were there for me.

I wish I had ordered this book prior to beginning my radiation treatment. This book, while repetitive in areas, leaves no stone unturned. Prepares you for the "worst" and gives great tips. Especially informative with the Port IV and other chemo/radiation nuaces. You can never go wrong with the Dummie Series of books! :)

The biggest fear about cancer, is the unknown. I attended a Q & A session at my college with the doctors and author of this book. These people are passionate about the subject matter. I bought this book for my mother-in-law, who is newly diagnosed with breast cancer after looking at it. She loved it, and her husband read it too. It provides real information that you need to know to know about cancer and treatment of cancer. It demystifies, explains things, and is a very reliable source of information. I think this is the first book that people should read if they or a loved one is diagnosed with cancer.

I read this book the night before my sister's first visit to her oncologist for treatment of lymphoma. Then I gave it to her.

It helps to make the incomprehensible a little easier to understand. The day of my sister's last radiation visit, she gave it to a mother of a 16-year-old brain cancer patient. She urged her to pass it on when she was finished with it.

I recently bought another copy of Chemo and Radiation for Dummies through Amazon for a friend whose daughter has ovarian cancer. She and her family were so appreciative.

This book was written by an old friend of mine; a woman with more grace and love of living than anyone else I have ever known. Reading it always brings a smile.

I have had a number of people I've cared for over the last few years refer to this book as helpful. I finally decided to buy one and saw for myself why this is true. The book gently covers topics unique to the female experience of cancer care. Often friends and family members will ask how to connect and support the cancer patient. Thankfully, this book offers excellent ideas for conversation starters and perspective by using humor, inspiration and sincerity. In writing this book the author has provided a valuable gift for other female cancer patients walking her shoes.

One of the best books I have ever read. I'm a 34 year old female who just finished treatment for lymphoma. Ms. Hyde captured my feelings and thoughts perfectly. I highly recommend this to anyone going through a battle with cancer or to any caregivers also. I wish I had found this book when I was actually having my chemo and radiation. Some of her pointers would have helped me a lot (ie. always carry a blanket with you to chemo and to hospitals).

My mother wrote this book.I am so glad to see she has helped so many people and still is.A toast to a wonderful woman !(wine of course )

My mother wrote this book.She passed away a few years ago,but when i read her book it makes me smile.I am so glad she was able to share this with other people and make them feel good to!A toast to a wonderful woman!(wine of course)

Is it possible to be this sardonic and compassionate at the same time?
Shelley Lewis opens the windows in the stuffy room of bumper sticker spirituality. Funny and caring in a Nora Ephron way and yet full of useful info. I read it as a story, not as a way to face breast cancer, and I recommend it to doctors and patients. You don't have to have breast cancer to enjoy this book. Another book I recommend to anyone facing a "devastating diagnosis" is Jessie Gruman's Aftershock.

Thanks you Shelly for letting me know that I am not alone!
I am in the middle of my chemotherapy treatments for breast cancer and I WAS feeling lousy for not finding the "silver lining" and not experiencing the upliftling life changing moment I was supposed to get from having cancer.
She really gave me alot to think about, namely that its ok to have my own experience and it's ok if it really sucks.
Thanks for writing this book Shelly!

Last year, my husband was diagnosed with an incurable cancer at just 35 years of age. As we went through this devastating ordeal, the last thing we wanted to read about was how we should be having some great epiphany. I can assure you that cancer is not the best thing that ever happened to our family, nor did it make us better people. I often felt guilty for the sort of resentment I felt towards the cancer hype portrayed in the media. That is, until I read Ms. Lewis' book and discovered that I wasn't the only one with this reaction. How liberating to read thoughts, which mirrored my own, within those pages!

When I first found this book on Amazon, I read the synopsis and excerpts to my husband. We were both in tears from hysterical laughter! I anxiously awaited the book and immediately dove into the pages when it arrived. I read most of it aloud to my husband, who laughed along with me, giving us a much needed therapeutic break. As my husband and I further discussed excerpts, I learned details about his perspective, about which I had never thought. I was able to see I had unknowingly been insensitive in certain instances. This book served as a wonderful catalyst for discussion.

Ms. Lewis states her case clearly and adeptly. The writing is exceptional, and the read is easy and light. As a writer myself, this book served as a wonderful source of inspiration. It certainly tops my list of favorites!

I want to thank Ms. Lewis for having the guts to be honest about this very sensitive topic. There is an immense amount of pressure on patients, "survivors", and caregivers to "sugar-coat" the realities of cancer. In my opinion, her candid approach is much more therapeutic and helpful in the end. I encourage anyone going through a cancer experience to read this book. It is a valuable resource for patients, caregivers, family, and friends.

Being a 3 time breast cancer repeat offender, this book rang more true than any of the others I have read. I was beginning to feel guilty about not having a spiritual experience until I read this book. Also I was getting quite peeved about "the race" because they don't interview people with multiple occurences. They only show happy, happy, happy faces of those with 1 occurence. What are we, chopped liver?
This book has made me rethink my advice to first time offenders. It is certainly the most honest book I have read about this awful disease. I highly recommend it to any breast cancer patient or family member of patient.

Part memoir, part how-to book, "The Five Lessons I Didn't Learn from Breast Cancer" has universal appeal for all sorts of cancers, even the "non-female" kind like my non Hodgkin's lymphoma. Though there are plenty of how-to tips for newly diagnosed breast cancer patients, I enjoyed this book because of Lewis' take on the "Tyranny of Positive Thinking" and the pinkapalooza cartel. I respect her choice not to call herself a "survivor," though I wonder if it's really because, as she says, Death wasn't at her door, but rather sent her a "Thinking of You Card." (For me, Death had pulled into the driveway and parked the car.) Never whiny and often downright funny, this book is a must-read for anyone who has been sucker punched by cancer.

I was honored to be on the receiving list of Carla's "Metamorphosis" emails as she went through this experience, but the book brought even more insight and inspiration and a better understanding of her journey. I have given this book to several friends who have faced the same or similar diagnosis - it gave them comfort to read Carla's account and to know that they shared many of the same experiences and emotions.

It is clear to this reader that Carla's diagnosis and treatment has been a source of personal growth and insight, lovingly shared with those around her. After reading the book, one cannot help but notice the "Divine Interventions" that touch our daily lives. Quite an inspiration - an absolutely fabulous book!

Anyone going through a life-changing situation such as cancer, no matter what type, can benefit from this book. The importance of humor, accepting help from others, and believing God is with us every step of our journey is echoed throughout this very inspirational book. Carla writes with such honesty, courage, and hope; you can't help but feel uplifted & strengthened after reading it. I highly recommend this book!
Barbara Richards

What an incredible book! Carla takes a very tough topic and helps you understand her emotions while going through this incredible phase of her life. This gutsy and powerful book is a must read for any individual going through a life changing situation.

Going through the ordeal of breast cancer is horrific enough, but to have the wherewithall and courage to write about the experience....amazing! Anyone facing this diagnosis must read about Carla's journey. It's a most insightful and inspiring story from a woman who has walked the walk.

The Best News About Radiation Therapy takes a very open, personal approach to making its readers feel comfortable. The author affirms the anxieties that the reader confronts, thus making the reader realize that it is normal to be so scared. That alone makes the reader feel better.

By methodically and humanistically going through the entire sequence of events a person encounters in a radiation therapy environment, the author demystifies and destigmatizes radiation treatment. The author's upbeat approach is infectious! The inspirational quotes that accompany each chapter cheer the reader. I salute the author for writing this informative book.

Besides being easy to read and understand, the virtual tour of radiation therapy via the clear photos in the book rendered "Best News" an asset. There are no boring graphs or tables, just reader friendly information.

Dr. Kornmehl uses lots of clinical vignettes througout The Best News, to which people can relate and derive a sense of light through the darkness.

Dr. Kornmehl's book exudes compassion and hope along with comprehensive information. I'm so glad it was available in my doctor's office and easy to acquire on my own.

Excellent Book
This book is written so a non-medical person can comprehend this difficult subject. The book is one of a kind. A must for anyone who needs radiation therapy. A great motivator for hope in a world of dispair.

Dr. Janet Smith evidently 'walked the talk' and has written her experiences to help those facing the same; or similar, battle with death. We must hang tough with God. "One Gift of Grace: My Path Through to the Other Side of Disease" has been a tremendous help for us as we walk through the valley of the shadow of death. The book helped us keep the 'mountain tops' in our sights and not lose hope. Thank you, Janet.

Dr. Janet Smith has written a courageous book that brings to life the real human struggle of accepting one's mortality while discovering one's innate spirituality and the appreciation of Grace. Being taken as close to death as medical science can take anyone, she recounts her resurrection from its cold painful grip in clear understandable language.


Dr. Smith recounts how she survives this difficult and painful journey because of her sister's healthy life saving stem cells that were transplanted into her as she danced the thin line between life and death. While fighting for her own life, Dr. Smith experiences the passing of several of her new friends who lost their fight for life in the transplant ward. Her life saving experience was further complicated by the tragedy of 9/11 as her admission to the hospital paralleled the event. Along the journey, Dr. Smith exposes the strengths and the glaring weaknesses of today's modern healthcare system. Throughout all this, Dr. Smith weaves her growing appreciation of humankind's transcendent spirituality.


As a living example of the value of stem cell transplants, her life validates the need for stem cell research while encouraging the debate over its ethical use. Reading this book about her journey will help people balance both the cold science with the loving Grace that comes from having escaped death's cold grasp.


This is a necessary read for those on either or both sides of the stem cell argument. Most importantly, it may help to bring them closer together. Dr. Smith has written a book that will help everyone appreciate the balance that is needed between science and spirituality. She gracefully reveals both are necessary for a healthy life.

Inspiring. Uplifting. I think anyone and everyone should experience this book. It's not just something you read it's an experience that will last a lifetime. If you have ever asked yourself, "How am I ever going to get through this?" Dr. Janet will show you the answer. This book will help anyone that has doubt or issues of anykind I reccomend it for everyone to read.

This is a very well written book. She does an excellent job communicating with the reader her experience and how it has affected her physically, emotionally and spiritually. Well done Dr. Janet, I thoroughly enjoyed every page!

ONE GIFT OF GRACE, by Dr. Janet Smith, is testament to the most human of ironies: That nothing enhances the value of life like the prospect, impending or distant, of losing it.

Subtitled MY PATH THROUGH TO THE OTHER SIDE OF DISEASE, she recounts her journey, her odyssey, as Everyman, faced with the awe-filled challenge of a dread disease that threatens being. She appears better prepared than the rest of us to confront some of the medical mysteries presented by AMM (agnogenic myeloid metaphasia) because of her schooling and practice as research chemist and Doctor of Veterinarian Medicine. Indeed, one of the excellent features in this biographical journal is her knowledge and explanation of the biology and pathology of her disease, clearly describing to the reader what is happening as she battles AMM.

But more engaging for us are the other questions that are tacitly posed for someone in her predicament: "What are the values, my values, that have animated my life?' What are the spiritual resources which this daughter of the South, one of five loving and well-loved children, draws upon on this seemingly chaotic pathway through disease and disorder?

Well, a bit of wry humor, as the epigraph to one chapter tells us: "Doctor, heal thyself! Trouble was I was a tired old horse doc."

But also the other "virtues," like love, honesty, and courage, drawn from herself and others, along the way. We all come to realize that life is an odyssey, not because we bumble through it, but because we discover ourselves and others in the passage.

Dr. Smith hints at some of her most important discoveries by quoting Marcel Proust, Emerson, and contemporary writers: "We don't receive wisdom, we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take us or spare us." (Proust) "Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day, begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be cumbered with your old response." (Emerson)

At a critical point in her book, Dr. Smith speaks of the transformation from doctor to patient. But read carefully and you may discover a further transformation to an existential being. I even hear Biblical echoes of St. Paul's "putting on the New Man."

Like all good biographies, this is a book of self discovery. It teaches us that the heart often discovers what the mind forgets. Just what, exactly, is this gift of grace on the other side of her disease? Take the journey with her.

This book explains how chemotherapy is a poison and how it is truly ineffective in the majority of cancers. With a few exceptions of some very rare cancers, chemotherapy in fact often kills the patient - even before the cancer itself does. I feel very relieved after reading this book that if I were ever faced with this dreadful disease that I would know there are other options. This book alludes to that, as the author apparently has written several others books about alternative, non-toxic treatments. I am going to read his recommended cancer prevention books. I have heard doctors say that in many cases cancer CAN be prevented through diet and excercise as well as through cancer screening and regular health exams. I am going to do all that is within my power to live a healthy life, and this book is one step in validating that people do not always need to resort to poisons in order to live.

I read this book after my lumpectomy for breast cancer. My doctor was asking me to consider chemotherapy due to lymph node involvement. Since I have other health problems, I was questioning if the chemo would be a wise choice for me personally.
This book gave me alot of information and answered alot of my questions. I felt by reading it I gained alot of knowledge in regards to my health decisions.
I would highly recommend this book for anyone who is dealing with cancer.

If you or someone you know has cancer, get this book.

My mom was diagnosed with cancer 5 years ago. Her oncologist tried to manipulate her into getting chemo and radiation. Even the radiologist who had been consulted said that radiation would not help her cancer.

He had an agenda. He didn't care if it would help her at all. He was the director of the cancer center, you see. He was motivated by greed and the desire to make everyone bow to his wishes.

She still refused chemo due to the information I gave her.

A few years after her diagnosis, she was written up in a journal because her cancer was so rare. In this journal they said that her kind of cancer had NEVER responded to chemo or radiation!

There was no known evidence of chemo being a help to her, yet he was determined to shove it down her throat.

It is 5 years since diagnosis and she is fine. She takes a lot of cleansing herbs and Chinese herbs and is healthier now than she was 5 years ago.

Do not let the cancer industry manipulate and scare you into taking POISON. Chemo is not medicine. It is poison. It is a race to see if the chemo kills you first or if the cancer does.

Usually people die of the effects of the chemo and radiation, not the cancer. Yet family members are so misinformed that even if the patient does not want chemo, the family begs them to take it.

Dr. Moss reveals the real effect of chemotherapy far removed from the advertised benefits that are promoted by the medical establishment. It can open up a whole new world for the reader, one the drug companies would like to leave closed.

It takes a lot of courage for a cancer patient to challenge the "expert" knowledge of his or her cancer doctor. This book gives you that ability. Life-saving? Indeed.

Before you submit to any cancer treatment, you need to read all of this book. It is comprehensive and detailed about every type of chemotherapy and every type of cancer. Side effects are horrific and natural substances which offset them are actually discouraged. Virtually nothing has changed since this book was published in 1995 except some of the drug names.

In 2002, the Journal of the American Medical Association reported that in the previous year, the average oncologist had made $253,000 of which 75% was profit on chemotherapy drugs administered in his/her office. Yet, surveys of oncologists by the Los Angeles Times and the McGill Cancer Center in Montreal show that from 75% to 91% of ongologists would refuse chemotherapy as a treatment for themselves or their families. Why? Too toxic and not effective. Yet, 75% of cancer patients are urged to take chemo by their oncologists.

Dr. Moss includes information on which cancers, all of them rare, chemotherapy works. This list has not changed since it was published by the National Cancer Institute in 1971. One of these is Embryonal Testicular Cancer, for which cyclist Lance Armstrong is the poster boy. Another is Wilm's Tumor. My 3-year old daughter was completely healed of Wilm's Tumor by removal of a kidney and treatment with chemotherapy 45 years ago.

Don't be fooled by terms like "response rate" or "5-year survival." For metastatic cancer (the only kind that kills), the success rate of chemotherapy (defined as long-term remission) is 3%.

Get Dr. Moss' book and dramatically improve your chances of recovery with the knowledge he gives you here.

Dark Remedy tells of how thalidomide caused the greatest medical disaster in history - but today is enjoying a comeback as a life-saving treatment despite its side effects. Dark Remedy considers how the drug became a nightmare in the 1960s, how it was banned, and how it's receiving new research attention today which may reinstate its use without its side effects. An intriguing medical history.

Dark Remedy by Brynner and Stephens is a rather scary tale of how one person, Dr. Frances Kelsey, may have just saved the people of the United States from a very trajic event in the 1960-61 era. Being a new FDA employee back then, she simply refused to permit its (ie, thalidomide) acceptance for the US (FDA approval) market, and by doing so, prevented one of the worst nightmares that could have occurred in American medical history. Many other countries had already approved the drug for use, and by doing so, suffered consequences most of us are well aware of to this date. For that one fact alone, she certainly deserved the medal given by President Kennedy and many thanks from every American. The book also shows how bullish a pharmaceutical company can be. In 1958, it boldly went through the William Merrill company, so to set up the manufacturing process, as the drug called "Kevadon" back then. We are all very fortunate, that she (Kelsay) had the will and inner guidance not to cave in to all of the pressures of lobbyists of other countries and just say "no." Their approval (other countries, I mean) earlier of this so-called "super safe" sedative caused some of the most grotesque limb malformations imaginable to people-- that totally trusted the medical community at the time. The makers of this product clearly knew the dangers, but in the interest of greed and money, openly chose to ignore the findings. Essentially, doctors and pharmacists were lied to in accepting their literature presented to our FDA. The authors state that metabolism of this product by our bodies generate over 100 byproducts, each capable of doing this or that, and I am not quite sure this is true. However, there is the attempt now to bring the drug back to the FDA for approval for use in "certain" other types of trajic disease states, such as MS or HIV. I can assure you, I have spoken to both CDER and the FDA, and this will happen ONLY if this product verifies properly every sentence they write in the literature and-- proves out as such in every milligram of discovery is verified. Whether Dr. Kelsay was just stubborn, wise, or lucky is irrevalent now, as she IS the person who, ultimately gave the FDA the power that it has today. An event like this often, is the defining moment of such governmental entities. However, the FDA is not without comflicts of interest as you will find out. The voting methods used on products even today, sometimes seem to contradict rationale on both sides of some of the issues troubling approval of certain medicinal products and devices. Rock Brynner and Trent Stephens do an excellent job of keeping the book on task, and full of suspense, describing the tasks done by the pharmaceutical firm to cover all of the little nasty secrets they had earlier hidden, including all of the free samples given to physicians and pharmacists to be handed out like rock candy during Christmas. Some texts I have read try to make a point that only one stereochemical form of the drug is bad, this is not important. The body often will transform between isoforms (R and S), so this is moot to me. If you needed to pick a choice of this trajic story, and the heroic job done by one person to whom we as Americans should be indebted, it is this one. This book is a winner!

I bought this remarkable book last year and have recommended it to several people. I know next to nothing about medicine, so it came as a revelation. When I was a child in the 1960s, this mysterious horror always lurked in the distance, terrifying but incomprehensible. Like nuclear fallout or the mercury poisoning of Minamata, thalidomide was an important symbol of Frankenstein technology, but I didn't read a proper study of the nightmare until I read 'Dark Remedy' last year.

Like many adolescents of my generation, I also enjoyed 'thalidomide jokes'. We thought these were very funny. At the time, I had no understanding of the terrible death and misery the drug inflicted on thousands of children.

Despite the suffering it caused, thalidomide has undergone an amazing 'second act'. Almost unbelievably, the Frankenstein monster has been reborn to do some good. In the 1960s, researches discovered that it could cure the lesions caused by an autoimmune disease called ENL. A decade later, it was found to be very effective for curing the lesions caused by leprosy (Hansen's disease); in fact, it was the only cure. In the 1980s, it was found to be extremely good for treating some of the symptoms of AIDS. It is now used to treat as many as 130 disorders. Who could have imagined that the drug that caused the worst medical disaster of the 1950s could be used to ameliorate the worst medical disaster of the 1980s?

'Dark Remedy' should be read be everyone who is interested in science and health.

As outlined above, this book details the history of thalidomide, including its discovery, introduction into society, harmful effects, withdrawal, and eventual rebirth as a useful medication. It is very interesting and keeps your attention throughout the entire book. I am a physician and learned very much from this book, including some information about the FDA, and even about what thalidomide is used for today. I would say that you should read this book if you have any interest in medical history told in a narrative fashion. It will educate you on a tragic event in history and the amazing effects of medications upon human beings. Great, great, great book!

This short book is a compelling drama, complete with innocent victims, dark villians and compassionate and dedicated heros. But it is no simple account in black and white. Rather it is a textured retelling of the profound human tragedy of Tahlidomide, it's impact on the phamaceutical industry, the FDA's regulatory role, and the pursuit of scientific insight.

It will come as a surprise to many laypeople that Thalidomide, notorious for the extreme birth defects it caused when it burst upon the consciousness of the world in the early 1960s, is now used for the treatment of dozens of conditions. This book details the painful story of Thalidomide's devastation; the greed and indifference of it's corporate promoters; the dilligence and dedication of a handful of doctors who helped curtail it's spread, the tortured legal struggle of it's victims, and the difficult and collaborative process by which scientists discovered it's secrets and are putting it to use to relieve suffering.

The history is recounted on a human scale, making the drama real to the reader. The science, as complex as it is - including molecular structures and the mechanisms of DNA - is articulated in a way that makes it accessible even to the layperson.

I highly recommend it.