Plus you have to break the news to family, quiet your own fears, cope with side effects, figure out how you're going to pay for things, and sometimes still get to work and get dinner on the table. When we were looking, we couldn't find exactly the kinds of books we wanted. Overview books give you a perspective. Books written by doctors give you some information. They describe a body part or system and particular surgeries or drugs in detail.
Memoirs written by a single patient are informative.
They describe how one person responded to an illness, its impact on her emotions and family, her own healing. But it's just one story and might not be very representative of the stories of others. Because we couldn't find what we were looking for, we've written books that contain the information that we would want to know in a particular situation. There's no way a book can tell you the best treatment for you. However, we can give you information that can help you to intelligently work with your doctor to come to a treatment decision.