If you've recently been diagnosed with colon or rectal cancer and want to know what you're in for, read this. It's like getting insider info from a friend who has been through it before. "Positive Options for Colorectal Cancer" lets you accompany a variety of people (with the author as your guide) on their journey -- from "I think there may be something wrong" all the way to adjusting to life after an ostomy and dealing with a recurrence.
Author Credibility
Carol Ann Larson doesn't feign to know all there is about colorectal cancer. Instead, she tells you her story -- what was easier than she had imagined, what was harder, what took her by surprise. She uses others' stories to add more experiences and includes several question-and-answer sessions with doctors. This approach of combining personal experiences with straight answers from doctors, helps make "Positive Options for Colorectal Cancer" a credible and practial guide to dealing with the disease.What's Good About this Book
"Positive Options for Colorectal Cancer" does a great job of explaining technical terms. It also provides insider information that patients aren't likely to find anywhere else. What's the atomsphere like where you get chemo? Are people sad? Do they talk? Are they writhing in pain? What? And how about wearing one of those bags? How do people come to terms with that? What are they, exactly? What do they look like? Do they smell? What's it like -- not the mechanics of it, but the emotional side of it? Picking clothes. Having sex. Playing contact sports. Informational pamphlets from the National Cancer Institute and American Cancer Society are great, but none will fill you in on the day-to-day stuff like this book.One last thing that struck me: Carol Ann Larson doesn't make any assumptions that end up excluding people. For example, she mentions prayer as a way of finding strength during your ordeal, but she includes other options too and doesn't assume that everyone believes in God or a higher power. Also, the book discusses sex and sexuality after treatment in a gender-neutral way that doesn't exclude members of same-sex couples.
What's Bad About This Book
Oddly enough, nothing of substance. There were a couple of typos, but that's it. The information was accurate, well organized, well rounded, and very inclusive.Who Should Read this Book?
Anyone interested in the no-BS version of colorectal cancer treatment should read this book. It's like having a smart, witty friend who has been through it before, along with many other survivors and doctors, at your disposal, any time of day. I definitely recommend it.
