I need to provide two disclaimers about my response to this reading. The first is that I am incredibly squeamish so there were many visceral moments in this book that overwhelmed me. I also have had three surgeries – minor ones, especially compared to what Boyer endured – but her poignant descriptions of what a throbbing IV feels when its puncturing various parts of your body was more than enough to bring me back to my own recovery room experiences.

The second is that my mom is a radiologist who specializes in treating women with breast cancer. As such, I think I was very in-tune to the role that doctors play in this work. I found her section on p.55 about the callous studying that doctors do of the patient’s body to be thought-provoking. I know that my mom went into her field to heal people but I also know she did it because the work is fascinating to her – I had always considered that a win-win situation but this scene made me consider that to a patient, it must be demoralizing to understand that your dying body is also an exciting puzzle. There were also moments on p. 191 and p. 269 that unnerved me. These were moments in which Boyer addressed the skepticism that people have about breast cancer, some even going so far as to accuse doctors of lying to them about their diagnoses. Here, I heard my mom’s voice in my head. I know that Western medicine and all the doctors trained in it are not perfect and there have been some – very rare – cases of abuse. However, it horrified me that people would sow seeds of distrust between sick people and their doctors, preying on the dying’s desperate hope that their situation is a ruse ­– and, honestly, it horrifies me a little that Boyer would entertain the thought in her work, though I appreciate that it is an act of earnestness.

Another moment that I briefly want to note is on p. 256. Boyer describes the lengths that a tired woman goes to in order to not look tired, because the hallmark of a tired woman is that she always tries. I found that there was a lot to relate to in this passage, and I especially appreciated the details about this female “trying,” the lengths we go to make it look like we haven’t gone to any lengths.