Book List
Suggested Reading:
100 Questions & Answers about Brain Tumors, by neuro-oncologist Virginia Stark-Vance, MD anaplastic oligodendroglioma survivor Mary.
"This book will prove an invaluable resource to brain tumor survivors. Chapters include The Basics, Diagnosis and Pathology, Neuro-imaging, Neurosurgary, Radiation Therapy, Chemotherapy and Drug Treatment, Clinical Trials for Brain Tumor Patients, Complications of Brain Tumors and Their Treatments and Taking Control of Your Future.
The Alpha Book on Cancer and Living: For Patients, Family, and Friends, by Brent G. Ryder; 1993: Alpha Institute.
"Finally, a book that really speaks to us all. This book really is a very helpful quide in so many ways. First of all with the big questions. It encourages us all to find our own way to facilitate our own fight...for our very lives. All while teaching us to LIVE our lives now." – Amazon.com book review
Always On Call: When Illness Turns Families into Caregivers, edited by Carol Levine; 2002: United Hospital Fund of New York.
"The narratives of the caregivers and the health care professionals who have contributed to this book provide a look at a private world in which not only the patient but the caretaker is affected. It is not easy...[A] thought-provoking book." – New York Times
Another Day in the Frontal Lobe, by Katrina Firlik; 2006: Random House.
Memoir by one of only two hundred or so women among the alpha males who dominate the high-pressure, high-prestige medical specialty of neurosurgery.
Brain Tumors: Guidebooks for Surviving Catastrophic Illness, by Paul M. Zeltzer, M.D.
Brain Tumors: Leaving the Garden of Eden, 2004: Shilysca Press.
"Intro" survivor’s guide contains basic facts you need to know about YOUR brain cancer: symptoms, diagnosis, getting organized, surfing the Internet,your Team, finding an Expert, getting a second opinion, contacts for major Brain Tumor Centers world-wide, steroids (decadron), CCNU, Temodar, Temodal, pain treatment...and more.
Brain Tumors: Finding the Ark, 2006: Shilysca Press.
Sequel to "Leaving the Garden of Eden" contains action-oriented, problem-solving info about Complementary/ Alternative & herbal therapies, chemotherapy, blood stimulants & radiation treatments- their side and late effects; insurance & HMOs; Clinical Trials; heredity; child brain tumors with their special considerations; and Your Legacy - what you want to tell people about your life.
Cooking Up A Cure For Brain Tumors, created by Lisa Gibson and Lisa Millar; 2002: The Brad Kaminsky Foundation for Brain Tumor Research.
100% of the proceeds from the sale of this book, a collection of hundreds of recipes from brain tumor patients and their loved ones, benefit the Brad Kaminsky Foundation for Brain Tumor Research.
Curveball: When Life Throws You a Brain Tumor, by Liz Holzemer, 2007; Ghost Road Press.
The story of a thirty-two year old woman who led a storybook life. Wife of a Major League Baseball pitcher she was enjoying a successful career as a journalist when an MRI revealed a baseball-size brain tumor she soon found out was called ‘meningioma.’
Damn the Statistics, I Have a Life to Live: Coping with a Brain Tumor My Personal Story, by H. Charles Wolf; 2003: Authorhouse.
A 43-year-old father of three in one day goes from being a successful senior manager to a man with a glioblastoma multiforme grade IV brain tumor; book covers his experiences, thoughts, and events from his first year as a survivor.
Kitchen Table Wisdom: Stories That Heal, by Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D.; 1996: Riverhead Books, Penguin Putnam, Inc.
A physician, therapist, professor of medicine and long-term survivor of chronic illness shares stories recounting her journey both as a patient and as a medical professional.
Making Miracles Happen, by Gregory White Smith and Steven Naifeh; 1998: Dell Island Books.
"Mr. Smith was told he had an inoperable brain tumor and given three months to live. That was 17 years ago. The power of his story is not in the details of his particular health problem, but the message that patients need to take control of their health and search for second, third and fourth opinions." – New York Times
I Don't Have Time for This: My Battle with Cancer, by Thomas Canavan Jr.; 2004: AuthorHouse.
For millions of people who are diagnosed with cancer, their first reaction is that they just received their death sentence. That reaction leads to a life of isolation, dependence and often misery for the cancer patient. "I Don't Have Time for This" is the story of a man who refused to surrender any part of his life while waging war against his illness. Author Tom Canavan opens the doors to his life and takes readers on the journey through his darkest period.
I Had Brain Surgery, What's You're Excuse?, by Suzy Becker; 2004: Workman.
Inspiring memoir takes readers on a journey that's both metaphysical and whimsical; rivetingly dramatic and unexpectedly light. Illustrated with drawings, charts, newspaper clippings, silly graphs, and real EEGs and MRIs.
Momentum of the Metronome, by Martin Hopley; 2006: Chipmunkapublishing.
Passionate account of life with a brain tumour which the author has written because he felt that there’s not enough exposure about brain tumours in the public domain. In 2001 Martin realised that he had lived a 3-act film, this inspired him to write his script about his life with a brain tumour. Features Martin’s script recreated in full and adapted by drama student Rebecca Brooks.
Rebounding From Death's Door, by Jeff Elliott; 2004: AuthorHouse.
Overcome with emotion after watching his son play in his first collegiate basketball game, Jeff was inspired to tell the story of how his son overcame a massive brain tumor, double vision, and zero balance to receive a basketball scholarship and earn a starting position on his college team.
***End-Of-Life Issues***
Chasing Daylight: How My Forthcoming Death Transformed My Life, by Eugene O'Kelly; 2006: McGraw-Hill.
Memoir of KPMG Chairman and CEO completed in the three-and-a-half months between his diagnosis with brain cancer and his death in September 2005.
What Dying People Want, by Dr. David Kuhl; 2002: Public Affairs/Perseus Books.
"...an all-encompassing guide for people with a terminal illness and those who know someone who is dying." – New York Times
A Few Months To Live, by Jana Staton, Roger Shuy and Dr. Ira Byock; 2002: Georgetown University Press.
"...follows nine terminally ill people, interweaving their thoughts with those taking care of them…the authors found that the most feared aspects of dying – great pain, loneliness and depression – did not dominate the last days of most of the patients studied." – New York Times
Caring for Patients at the End of Life, by Dr. Timothy E. Quill; 2002: Oxford.
"...offers valuable guidelines for doctors, patients and families discussing difficult subjects like delivering bad news, the challenges of hospice and palliative care, and the options available to dying patients." – New York Times
***Helping Children Cope***
Sad But OK: My Daddy Died Today - A Child's View of Death, by Barbara Frisbie; 1990: Blue Dolphin Publishers.
"I found this book before my husband died...it was a god-send...I would recommend this book to anyone who is dealing with end stages of a brain tumor who has children. It is hard to read at times, but very honest and it definitely hit home." – From a participant in the M.I.T. BRAINTMR email group
***Online Resources***
Book List of The Musella Foundation
The Healing Forest Book Shop - See Grief, Grief & Children, and Family Issues sections.