Mukherjee's perspective is a bit too clinical for my explorations on cancer. The genetic theories about cancer development are chronicled in full detail here, but I don't think genes are the entire story behind this most elusive of diseases. The writer dedicates entire chapters to surgeries and medications that failed, or only work part of the time. Many of the statistics between treatment and type of cancer look like correlations and not facts. I'd been hoping for an in-depth chapter on the correlations between diet and cancer. All I got was a single sentence about diet: something like what you eat may create a cancerous environment, but further studies are needed to prove it. And does that not describe all the medical states of uncertainty in his book?
Unfortunately, this tells me the writer has an industry bias more than anything. As a doctor, any nutritional advice would hinder the medical industry's services, so this vital component of cancer development was conveniently left out. The book is a 5-star history of medical/genetic cancer research, 1 star for those looking for a broader approach.
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