"The Emperor of All Maladies - A Biography of Cancer"

Hal61 said:

Thanks
. . . for the recommendation. I read three reviews. My favorite was by an author and professor of medical journalism and related at Columbia University that appeared in the NY Times.

In the Seventies the "war" on cancer was on. This is from the review:

"The “iconic battleground” of the time was the chemotherapy ward, Mukherjee (book's author) writes, “a sanitized vision of hell.” Typically it was a kind of limbo, almost a jail, in which absolutely no one spoke the word “cancer,” the inmates’ faces had an orange tinge from the drugs they were given, and windows were covered with heavy wire mesh to keep them from committing suicide."

The stigma is still with us, but certainly less than it was then, but may be why we often say "c" here instead of cancer.

Hal

Hal61 said:

"Was", Sweet
Didn't mean to disturb Sweet. It's from the book, part of the history on cancer. I know you know, what people with psychological problems were subjected to. Medicine has improved across the board. Cancer is now a celebrity cause, but it still causes unease. People still say the darndest things when you tell them you've been diagnosed with cancer. But hey, we've got better medicine, better prognosis, and the surviors here to support us. We're o.k.

Hal