Review

A breast surgeon and director of the Comprehensive Breast Health Center at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and herself a breast cancer survivor, Kaelin has the credentials to offer advice to women newly diagnosed. She discusses the process from diagnosis and surgical options to treatment, image concerns, and after-treatment issues, e.g., diet, fertility, and sexuality. Her lucid text is broken into major sections, then smaller and smaller subsections, along with sidebars, and is further enhanced by black-and-white illustrations. She covers the latest thinking on surgical recommendations and the newest drug considerations (capecitabine chemotherapy for older women; Tamoxifen vs. aromatase inhibitors for adjuvant use), while using her own experience as a reference point. Her tone is convivial, her language accessible, even downright cutesy ("wimpy or aggressive cancer," despite surgical intervention, "cells may have already scooted into tissue"). Kaelin's goal is to help eradicate the "imprint" of cancer from women's lives by presenting them with sufficient knowledge and the power to make informed choices. Highly recommended for patient health collections. (Index not seen.)- Bette-Lee Fox, Library Journal

In many ways, Kaelin's guide for women diagnosed with breast cancer is just like all the other excellent manuals out there: intelligent, pragmatic and reassuring, it explains how to understand one's diagnosis and treatment options, assemble a "care team," handle common changes in looks and deal with feelings common among women with the disease. What sets the book apart, though, is its author's perspective: she is a breast cancer surgeon and director of the Comprehensive Breast Health Center and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, and was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2003. She has since had three lumpectomies, a mastectomy, chemotherapy and reconstructive surgery. Not surprisingly, then, Kaelin's book is fairly serious, though not overly academic, and filled with anecdotes from not only her own experiences as a breast cancer patient but from many other women, too. The result is a helpful book that will inform patients and their families, giving them a firm grasp on both the medical and emotional aspects of breast cancer. Kaelin's tone is upbeat but not intensely so; her approach will probably best suit women who just want the facts without too much sentimentality. --PW

From the Publisher

Carolyn M. Kaelin, M.D., M.P.H., FACS, is the director of the Comprehensive Breast Health Center at Brigham and Women's Hospital, a surgical oncologist at Dana Farber Cancer Institute, and an assistant professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School. She is a recipient of the prestigious Mary Horrigan Connor Award for Outstanding Contributions to Women's Health.

Francesca Coltrera is a medical writer who has covered women's health for well over a decade. She is a frequent contributor to Harvard Health Publications and has written for Redbook, Self, and the Boston Herald.

From the Back Cover

Winner of two prestigious American Medical Writers Association awards

A compassionate guide to surviving breast cancer from a doctor who has experienced it from both sides of the stethoscope

In addition to being a leading national breast cancer expert and a highly respected cancer surgeon, Dr. Carolyn Kaelin also is a breast cancer survivor. In Living Through Breast Cancer she draws upon her experiences as both doctor and patient to offer you a priceless source of understanding, support, and guidance on coping with and beating breast cancer.

Dr. Kaelin's warm, authoritative guidance will help you:

Understand your diagnosis and choose a care team
Identify your treatment options and make informed decisions
Look and feel your best during and after treatment
Maintain good health after breast cancer
Lower your chances of a recurrence of breast cancer

About the Author

Carolyn M. Kaelin, M.D., M.P.H., FACS, is the director of the Comprehensive Breast Health Center at Brigham and Women's Hospital, a surgical oncologist at Dana Farber Cancer Institute, and an assistant professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School. She is a recipient of the prestigious Mary Horrigan Connor Award for Outstanding Contributions to Women's Health.

Francesca Coltrera is a medical writer who has covered women's health for well over a decade. She is a frequent contributor to Harvard Health Publications and has written for Redbook, Self, and the Boston Herald.