Prostate Cancer

Man to Man by Michael Korda

Somehow I have been reading a lot about prostate cancer of late. Funny how things can be off your radar for ever, but suddenly it seems to be everywhere. Seems that prostate cancer is the male equivalent of breast cancer, but possibly targeting a somewhat older age group.

Being aware of some such stats, when I spotted this book, I picked it up right away. It is very engagingly written. The effect of Michael's experience as a book editor and writer is very apparent. It is the story of his being diagnosed with prostate cancer, the whole process of figuring out the treatment options, the actual surgery and the long recovery. The whole thing was just eye-opening, since for me it was also the first account I was reading about any kind of serious medical problem and its treatment.

The main take-away was that cancer needs to be taken really seriously, and that you need to become as aware about your disease as possible. Some of the quotes from the man-to-man discussion section really drove this point home. "You are not a cancer victim, you are a cancer survivor", "You are responsible for your own treatment, though you may employ a team of physicians for that".

Strongly recommended.