The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer
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- Create Date：2021-08-19 09:54:15
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Siddhartha Mukherjee
- ISBN：0007250924
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Summary
A Biography of Cancer
The story of cancer is a human one - a tale of chance discoveries， seized opportunities and human endurance。 From innovative but brutal early surgical treatments to the Curies' ultimately tragic work with radiation; from Sidney Farber's hugely risky discovery of chemotherapy to the author's treatment of his own patients， this riveting book recounts a centuries-long conflict。
Now， as cancer becomes an ever more universal experience， the need to understand it， and its treatment， has never been more compelling。 In this groundbreaking account Siddhartha Mukherjee， bestselling author of The Gene， reveals how far we have come in solving one of science's great mysteries and offers a facinating glimpse of our future progress。
（back cover）
The story of cancer is a human one - a tale of chance discoveries， seized opportunities and human endurance。 From innovative but brutal early surgical treatments to the Curies' ultimately tragic work with radiation; from Sidney Farber's hugely risky discovery of chemotherapy to the author's treatment of his own patients， this riveting book recounts a centuries-long conflict。
Now， as cancer becomes an ever more universal experience， the need to understand it， and its treatment， has never been more compelling。 In this groundbreaking account Siddhartha Mukherjee， bestselling author of The Gene， reveals how far we have come in solving one of science's great mysteries and offers a facinating glimpse of our future progress。
（back cover）
Reviews
Philippa Imogen
，
must read for cancer researchers to gain a big picture， easy to read but quite a duration。
Aranka
，
An interesting， well put together story of cancer through time。 I was very much enjoying learning more about the medical history， especially of chemotherapy。 A warm recommendation to the medical folks on this one。
Monica
，
Mukherjee is fantastic at making scientific history accessible for non-scientists。 Thoughtful， hopeful， and grim all at once。
Peter
，
the fascinating and sometimes shocking story of man's war against the big CWhen I was a younger man， I used to think that cancer was a disease of the last few decades， because I had never encoutered anyone who had been diagnosed with cancer。 However， slowly but surely， this dreaded disease creeped on me: first a niece， then an uncle， then another niece， then my Mum and finally。。。myself。 So I decided it was time to find out some more about this mysterious disease that strikes terror in everyone， the fascinating and sometimes shocking story of man's war against the big CWhen I was a younger man， I used to think that cancer was a disease of the last few decades， because I had never encoutered anyone who had been diagnosed with cancer。 However， slowly but surely， this dreaded disease creeped on me: first a niece， then an uncle， then another niece， then my Mum and finally。。。myself。 So I decided it was time to find out some more about this mysterious disease that strikes terror in everyone， just by pronouncing the word。 This book is the perfect way to start: it's very well written （sometimes it reads like a thriller）， it's comprehensive， it's accessible but not vulgarizing; and it will leave you shocked。 Shocked by how little we still now about how cancers actually work and proliferate; shocked by the reluctance of pharmaceutical companies to invest in cures for rare cancers （not enough profit to be made）; shocked by how patients were treated a guinea pigs （the radical mastectomy！）; shocked by the serendipity of how cancer cures were found; shocked by the fact that for some cancers we haven't advanced an inch in the last 50 years。 There are 3 'flaws' or better still 'shortcomings' to this book which made me withhold my fifth star:1。 The main focus is on American scientist， oncologists， hospitals。 Some European scientist are mentioned in passing， but according to this book very little research on cancer was done in Europe or Asia。2。 Part Five of the book that dels with the molecular biology of cancer （cell division， DNA - RNA， protein formation， etc。） really requires some basic knowledge of this discpline， because it gets quite technical。3。 The book was published in 2010 and hasn't been updated since。 I like to think （at least I hope so） the last 11 years more progress has been made in the search for cures for cancer。 So the information may be slightly outdated。Nevertheless this is fascinating read， if only for the general conclusion of the book: cancer will always be with us and we will never be able to eradicate it！ 。。。more
Rupin Chaudhry
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This is the story of eternal horror where the ghost rises from within and festers and slithers and mutates。 To confront cancer is to confront a life form more inclined to survive and outgrow any treatment。Good read but keeping in the spirits of the main protagonist “there is no logical or easy ending to the book”
Shelby Brizzolara-Dove
，
This book is super dense。 Tons and tons of information and a very comprehensive history， not just of cancer but of medicine and science in general。 It's very interesting but I would have liked to have more stories from the author's practice。 Definitely well written and it is still accessible to folks without a background in science。 This book is super dense。 Tons and tons of information and a very comprehensive history， not just of cancer but of medicine and science in general。 It's very interesting but I would have liked to have more stories from the author's practice。 Definitely well written and it is still accessible to folks without a background in science。 。。。more
Ann
，
This book helped me understanding the science and history behind cancer， when I was confronted with it myself。Having a scientific mind， I needed to know more about this disease， which one learns to respect and understand better by reading this book。I'm personally less interested in books that cover personal health experiences （autobiographic - there are so many！）， and I was pleased to find this one。 This book helped me understanding the science and history behind cancer， when I was confronted with it myself。Having a scientific mind， I needed to know more about this disease， which one learns to respect and understand better by reading this book。I'm personally less interested in books that cover personal health experiences （autobiographic - there are so many！）， and I was pleased to find this one。 。。。more
__frontside__
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Fantastic book。 Captivating， insightful， very informative and well written。I started reading the book with the fear that I might just get even more afraid of this illness， instead I found that the author tries to demystify a very complex and frightening disease and renders it just a touch less intimidating by making the reader understand it a bit better。
Maddie Borcyk
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It was rather dry
Orysia Khomiak
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Книга далася нелегко。 Багато флешбеків до 20-х， 30-х，。。。 років минулого століття， а також Давніх цивілізацій。 Водночас， відкрила для себе， що онкозахворювання - точно не "відкриття" сучасності。Попри нелегке читання， книга інформативна， чесна і просякнута надією。 Книга далася нелегко。 Багато флешбеків до 20-х， 30-х，。。。 років минулого століття， а також Давніх цивілізацій。 Водночас， відкрила для себе， що онкозахворювання - точно не "відкриття" сучасності。Попри нелегке читання， книга інформативна， чесна і просякнута надією。 。。。more
Meghan McCue
，
An excellent journey through the ups and downs of the war against cancer。 The harsh realities of cancer treatments and often haphazard theories that became first line treatments is astonishing。 More importantly， you learn about the personal journeys of patients， doctors， and scientists。 Tying the personal and medical perspectives together made this book special。 I would highly recommend reading if you are interested in medical sciences。 I would have ideally given 4。5 stars as it is slightly tech An excellent journey through the ups and downs of the war against cancer。 The harsh realities of cancer treatments and often haphazard theories that became first line treatments is astonishing。 More importantly， you learn about the personal journeys of patients， doctors， and scientists。 Tying the personal and medical perspectives together made this book special。 I would highly recommend reading if you are interested in medical sciences。 I would have ideally given 4。5 stars as it is slightly technical and flip-flops through time in a way that is not always clear。 。。。more
Nunquam
，
DNF w 38% （233/616）Z powodów osobistych nie na ten moment w życiu， ale z pewnością do dokończenia。
Alex
，
I really tried as it had raving reviews all around。 Unfortunately， it just confirmed to me that very few non-fiction books capture and hold my interest。Too much medicinal jargon; too far back in history; well written but I guess I read about a chapter and put it down
Enrico
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A very extensive overview of the scientific and medical advancements in the treatment of all kinds of cancer， but mostly leukaemia and breast cancer。 I did not find any reason why I should rate this more than totally average though。
Russell Fralich
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Excellent。 Inspiring storytelling！
Brandon DeGroot
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Took me 6 weeks as I had to look up at least two words per page， but worth the tedious dictionary dive。 Although we will not solve the cancer curse， it does put into perspective how we can extend life through continued research， and prevent the most tragic of cancers
Tom Calvard
，
This is a long book on a difficult， grim subject， but Mukherjee writes about cancer with an incongruous exuberance， and covers its history with impressive scope and detail。From Atossa， the Persian Queen with breast cancer， all the way through to modern surgery， chemo， genetics and patients trawling the Internet for the latest medication trials to take part in， the full trajectory and influence of cancer over so many lives and hundreds of years is revealed。Mukherjee mainly focuses on America， a c This is a long book on a difficult， grim subject， but Mukherjee writes about cancer with an incongruous exuberance， and covers its history with impressive scope and detail。From Atossa， the Persian Queen with breast cancer， all the way through to modern surgery， chemo， genetics and patients trawling the Internet for the latest medication trials to take part in， the full trajectory and influence of cancer over so many lives and hundreds of years is revealed。Mukherjee mainly focuses on America， a context familiar to him， but I did wonder at times what was going on in the rest of the world， cancer-wise， in parallel to the various scientific breakthroughs he describes taking place in America。 He manages an eclectic mix of clinical， scientific， and humanities perspectives on cancer。 He does not neglect patients' stories and experiences， either。 At times he does seem to get rather carried away with metaphor， and cancer almost becomes this immortal， resilient creature of elegant design and abnormal beauty。 But it is hard not to wonder at the genetic and cellular complexity of the disease。 And the people are resilient too - so many people affected in different ways by this terrible illness。 We have come a long way， people are living longer， and let us hope for continued improvements in treatments， remissions and general quality of life。 。。。more
Brahm
，
So good！ 🤯 A tremendous amount of information communicated clearly and beautifully。 I can't help but compare to some of my favourites: the biographical finesse of Walter Isaacson （Mukherjee is a practicing doctor and shares the tales of some of his patients）， a deep technical history à la The Making of the Atomic Bomb （in fact this book was mentioned in the acknowledgements section）， and Gary Taubes-like brutally honest assessments of past missteps in the field of cancer treatment and research。 So good！ 🤯 A tremendous amount of information communicated clearly and beautifully。 I can't help but compare to some of my favourites: the biographical finesse of Walter Isaacson （Mukherjee is a practicing doctor and shares the tales of some of his patients）， a deep technical history à la The Making of the Atomic Bomb （in fact this book was mentioned in the acknowledgements section）， and Gary Taubes-like brutally honest assessments of past missteps in the field of cancer treatment and research。 The most infuriating misstep to me was "radical mastectomies，" which is best described as an arms-race of surgeons （note: not oncologists， but surgeons） to remove as much tissue as possible after a breast cancer diagnosis， including the entire breast， most chest muscles， some neck and shoulder muscles， and even rib bones。 Basically anything not strictly required for living。 This arms race occurred from the late 1800s well through most of the 20th century。 These surgeons did not （or could not） differentiate between a local or a metastasized cancer; if a breast cancer metastasized into say， other organs or the bones， a mastectomy - especially a "radical" one - is futile。 It was only after radiation and chemotherapy treatments became available that the medical/cancer establishment realized efficacy of these horribly disfiguring and disabling procedures had never been systematically studied。 Surgeons had a "cut it out" mentality and were stubbornly resistant to change。 Before oncology came together as a discipline you had surgeons， chemotherapists， and radiation docs essentially competing for clout。 It was only in 1981 （！！！） that "the results of the [radical mastectomy] trial were finally made public。 The rates of breast cancer recurrence， relapse， death， and distant cancer metastasis were statistically identical between the three groups [one treated with mastectomy， one with radical mastectomy， the last with surgery and radiation]。 The group treated with the radical mastectomy had paid heavily in morbidity [suffering]， but accrued no benefits in survival， recurrence， or mortality。" （p201）So many more stories were woven together into a captivating common narrative: - The history of medicine， and cancer in ancient history - The history of surgery and emergence of germ theory - The lobbying for， and creation of massive cancer research organizations to cure cancer， inspired by NASA's Apollo program- The tobacco-causes-lung-cancer saga （this is still unresolved and worsening in the developing world） - The insight from tobacco that for many cancers， the focus on treatments and cures eclipsed any focus on prevention for many years - The innovation of cancer-specific drugs and treatments from the late 80s onwards- Similarities between cancer treatments and AIDS treatments in the 80s- Modern （up to 2010， when the book was published） cancer treatments and research streams- Stories from Mukherjee's clinical experience with patients This book was also recommended to me ages ago by my dad， but it fell off my radar until Mukherjee appeared on an episode of Peter Attia's podcast which I listened to recently。 The episode aired in late 2018 and hinted at an updated version of the book， but in mid-2021 we haven't seen that yet。 I'd be keen to read any new material: on Attia's podcast they discussed "metabolic oncology"， essentially the impacts of diet and nutrition on cancer， which 10 years ago might have sounded like "woo woo" hand-waving， but might have profound impacts on treatment and even prevention。 I'm glad I read this book because cancer is something that touches all of us eventually。 This book can give any layperson a fairly nuanced understanding of what the disease is （at least， what is common among the many different types of cancer） and the history of its treatment， and how truly awful it is。 On the other hand， it is amazing that there are a handful of cancers that have been transformed from a death sentence to trivially curable thanks to dedicated research and risky treatments that have proven extremely effective。 It's hard to phrase this quite right， but I'm glad I read this at a time where no one close to me is dealing with cancer， at least not that I am aware of， because in places the book is so gruesome （particularly around legacy surgeries and treatments） that I think it would just add stress and anxiety。 In the future， what I learned from this book will help me be more understanding， informed， and compassionate as we （collectively） will inevitably have to confront these diseases again and again。 Strong general recommendation！ One of my top reads of the year so far。 。。。more
Mario
，
Tendría que mencionar que casi todo lo vertido en este libro lo he tenido que conocer desde que empecé la carrera de medicina; y ahora， trabajando en un instituto nacional del cáncer， me he volcado aún más en las cuestiones que rodean esta enfermedad， especialmente su patogenia y las manifestaciones。 Aún así， esperaba algo muy distinto。 Solo algunos apartados me parecieron de verdad interesantes。 Este libro se pudo contar en 300 páginas menos， de manera más concisa y más inmersiva。 Menciones bue Tendría que mencionar que casi todo lo vertido en este libro lo he tenido que conocer desde que empecé la carrera de medicina; y ahora， trabajando en un instituto nacional del cáncer， me he volcado aún más en las cuestiones que rodean esta enfermedad， especialmente su patogenia y las manifestaciones。 Aún así， esperaba algo muy distinto。 Solo algunos apartados me parecieron de verdad interesantes。 Este libro se pudo contar en 300 páginas menos， de manera más concisa y más inmersiva。 Menciones buenas: el papel de los Anatomistas y de los Patólogos。 。。。more
Kamil Gruner
，
Fascynująca！
Monica Kumaran
，
I'm still reading， but this is a beautiful， excellent book。 I'm still reading， but this is a beautiful， excellent book。 。。。more
Dave
，
A lot of takeaways from this one。 1。 So many examples of the value of general biology and chemistry research。 Incredible how many times a seemingly irrelevant finding in another context serendipitously enabled the next step in cancer research。 2。 Cancer is both us and a crafty little thing trying to kill us。 3。 How much more humane and effective treatments are that come from increased understanding of cancer biology than the treatments that come from observations about killing it。 How about that A lot of takeaways from this one。 1。 So many examples of the value of general biology and chemistry research。 Incredible how many times a seemingly irrelevant finding in another context serendipitously enabled the next step in cancer research。 2。 Cancer is both us and a crafty little thing trying to kill us。 3。 How much more humane and effective treatments are that come from increased understanding of cancer biology than the treatments that come from observations about killing it。 How about that？ It pays to tackle the cause。 But could we get an update？ This book is ten years old， and even as a layman， I was disappointed that the ride ended before we got to CRISPR。 。。。more
Fabiola Garcia
，
Hola a todos， quiero agradecer especialmente al Dr。 Joe。 por ayudarme a curarme del virus del herpes 2019， lo contacté en base a los testimonios que vi sobre él en Internet。Me diagnosticaron el virus HERPES。He intentado todo lo que puedo para curarme， pero todo lo que sé es útil， hasta que vi una publicación。 en un foro de salud sobre un hombre a base de hierbas que prepara medicamentos a base de hierbas para curar todo tipo de enfermedades， incluido el virus HERPES， al principio dudé si era r Hola a todos， quiero agradecer especialmente al Dr。 Joe。 por ayudarme a curarme del virus del herpes 2019， lo contacté en base a los testimonios que vi sobre él en Internet。Me diagnosticaron el virus HERPES。He intentado todo lo que puedo para curarme， pero todo lo que sé es útil， hasta que vi una publicación。 en un foro de salud sobre un hombre a base de hierbas que prepara medicamentos a base de hierbas para curar todo tipo de enfermedades， incluido el virus HERPES， al principio dudé si era real， pero decidí intentarlo。Me curó su medicina a base de hierbas y hierbas naturales， por favor póngase en contacto él hoy a través de su correo electrónico: drjoehome@gmail。com o mensaje de texto / llamada: + （234） 815573 0398 Está esperando para ayudarte。 ÉL TAMBIÉN SE ESPECIALIZA EN LAS SIGUIENTES Enfermedades; Si tiene alguna enfermedad como: VIH / SIDA， CÁNCER， HERPES 1 o 2， VERRUGAS GENITALES， Infección por levaduras （VPH） y Hepatitis A， B。 Tricomoniasis Gonorrea， epilepsia y sífilis 。。。more
Rohan Yesudian
，
Very long， but the detail was interesting because it linked a lot to what we have studied this year。 The audible narration was very robotic and not by the author himself
Carey Hughes
，
A remarkably thorough and highly impressive chronicling of the history， and human’s jostling with， cancer。
Hannah
，
What an amazing accomplishment。 Glad I finally decided to read this！
Amber Ashton
，
This book was really long and took me a couple of months to get through。 There were times and topics （the fundraising section for example） that I really felt like I was slogging through the information。 And there were other times I was so fascinated by what I was reading that I had to share it with whoever was around me at the time。I really liked that there were a few individuals that we got to know and see through their cancer journey。 That made it feel more personal。 I also loved how Mukherjee This book was really long and took me a couple of months to get through。 There were times and topics （the fundraising section for example） that I really felt like I was slogging through the information。 And there were other times I was so fascinated by what I was reading that I had to share it with whoever was around me at the time。I really liked that there were a few individuals that we got to know and see through their cancer journey。 That made it feel more personal。 I also loved how Mukherjee explained why he called it a "biography" and completely agree with his assessment。 We have come a long way in learning about and treating cancer and I felt hopeful at our prospects as we continue in the battle。 。。。more
Grace
，
The book is really well written。 Although it's nonfiction， Mukherjee writes it like a story， providing the personalities of each scientist mentioned and the historical context in which many new ideas and discoveries came about。 He also highlights the importance of how politics and public opinion influence scientific research， which is an interesting perspective。 It's a long， long read and there are probably over 200 different names mentioned， so I think I'd need to give The Emperor of All Malad The book is really well written。 Although it's nonfiction， Mukherjee writes it like a story， providing the personalities of each scientist mentioned and the historical context in which many new ideas and discoveries came about。 He also highlights the importance of how politics and public opinion influence scientific research， which is an interesting perspective。 It's a long， long read and there are probably over 200 different names mentioned， so I think I'd need to give The Emperor of All Maladies multiple read-throughs to absorb everything。 。。。more
Kalle Wescott
，
I read /The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer/， by Siddhartha Mukherjee:https://www。nytimes。com/2010/11/14/bo。。。Mukherjee's /The Gene/ was one of the best books I've ever read。 I also owe what little I know about genes and genetics and their history to Dr。 Mukherjee。This tome was a tougher read， as unlike in /The Gene/， Dr。 Mukherjee didn't give us all the scientific background we would need to understand everything in the book。 That might require a medical degree and more。 There ar I read /The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer/， by Siddhartha Mukherjee:https://www。nytimes。com/2010/11/14/bo。。。Mukherjee's /The Gene/ was one of the best books I've ever read。 I also owe what little I know about genes and genetics and their history to Dr。 Mukherjee。This tome was a tougher read， as unlike in /The Gene/， Dr。 Mukherjee didn't give us all the scientific background we would need to understand everything in the book。 That might require a medical degree and more。 There are also many different types of cancers， all grouped together as any disease in which cells begin to grow abnormally。Highly recommended！ 。。。more
J。J。 Murphy
，