I just finished reading When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi. The author is a neurosurgeon diagnosed with and eventually succumbs to stage 4 lung cancer. In his book, he gives a detailed account of his time in residency and raw depictions of the medical procedures required to obtain his medical degree. Oddly enough, some of what he wrote about regarding the brain I've become familiar with. The many years of living with a pituitary tumor have given me a basic education on the structure and function of the brain, so I could envision what he was describing. However, his narrative is so thorough that you don't have to be a brain tumor patient to understand. By relaying his own experience with sickness and death, Kalanithi's book sharpened my focus by reaffirming my resolve to live contentedly with pituitary disease and see there can be hope in suffering.
As I neared the end of the book, especially when reading the epilogue Dr. Kalanithi's wife wrote, tears rolled down my face at her description of his final days. My aunt died from stage 4 cancer last summer, so much of what Dr. Lucy Kalanithi wrote was strikingly similar to my aunt's experience - the chemo treatments, trips in and out of the hospital, and the quick breakdown of the body as death approached. Nevertheless, I found a measure of solace in the book and the authentic way Dr. Lucy Kalanithi writes about her husband's death (and the days that followed it...). Her words may be helpful for anyone dealing with chronic illness or cancer.
If you have not heard about this book, I'm posting the trailer as an introduction and a recommendation to read. Link to purchase: When Breath Becomes Air
In this next video, Dr. Lucy Kalanithi speaks about her late husband's book:
