 | After the Cure: The Untold Stories of Breast Cancer Survivors Subjects: Breast -- Cancer -- Treatment -- Complications; Breast -- Cancer -- Psychological aspects; Antineoplastic agents -- Side effects; A professor and an assistant research sociologist, respectively, at the University of California, Los Angeles, Abel and Subramanian speak with scores of breast cancer survivors to explore, in depth, the post-treatment symptoms caused by radiation, chemotherapy and surgery, "giving voice to a neglected aspect of the breast cancer experience." The women talk with Pat Garland, for example, whose treatment left her with several debilitating symptoms, including chronic joint pain in her arms and legs, that her doctors dismissed: "there was no validation... They saved my life, but then the value of my life after they saved it with the chemotherapy was zero." The authors hear similar stories from other women such as Ida Jaffe and Leanne Thomas, whose post-treatment symptoms include "hot flashes, dental and vision problems, insomnia, memory loss, fatigue and depression." With cogent, compassionate analysis, Subramanian and Abel (herself a survivor) remind us of the lasting effects of cancer diagnoses, and the tremendous work still ahead for patients who must learn to trust their gut, and doctors who must learn to listen more considerately. (Nov.) Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information. Abel Emily K. : Emily K. Abel is Professor Emerita at the UCLA-Fielding School of Public Health. She is the author of many books, including Hearts of Wisdom: American Women Caring for Kin, 1850-1940; Limited Choices: Mable Jones, A Black Children's Nurse in a Northern White Household (with Margaret K. Nelson); and Elder Care in Crisis: How the Social Safety Net Fails Families. Her book Tuberculosis and the Politics of Exclusion won the 2008 Viseltear Award for outstanding book in the history of public health from the Medical Care Section, American Public Health Association.Subramanian Saskia K. : Saskia K. Subramanian is assistant research sociologist in the UCLA Center for Culture and Health as well as a visiting assistant professor in the UCLA Women's Studies Department. Emily K. Abel (Author) |
