A Salamander's Tale: My Story of Regeneration?Surviving 30 Years with Prostate Cancer

by Paul Steinberg

Staring in the face of prostate cancer at age thirty-five and metastatic disease and proposed surgical castration at age forty, Paul Steinberg was forced to take two simultaneous journeys. The first was to transition from doctor to patient and surrender his physical health to a medical establishment he knew from firsthand knowledge would be using approaches that would be outdated within a few years. The second was a spiritual journey. His search for a higher meaning in his life sent him as far as walking over hot coals with Tony Robbins.

Using the salamander as his role model, Steinberg, a college-health and sports psychiatrist, takes a look at the evolution of the regenerative capabilities of cold-blooded vertebrates like the salamander and at what we as humans have lost and gained in our warm-bloodedness. How do human beings regenerate? How do we redeem ourselves when our capacity for regeneration is limited? How did the prostate evolve, and how does prostate cancer develop?

With wit and humor, Steinberg tackles lust and sex, and ultimately time and death and the gods. Having lived longer than virtually anyone else with metastatic prostate cancer, he uses his knowledge as a doctor and experience as a patient to provide a story of endurance and perseverance, weaving a tale of grace, regeneration, and redemption—just not the kind of regeneration and redemption that he or anyone else would expect.

Genres: Medicine, Memoir

224 pages, Hardcover

First published April 7, 2015

Reviews

[Shirley Folston · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant and inspiring book

Reading this book was a learning experience. I am grateful for the insight it has given me into fighting prostate cancer, the knowledge of some of the treatments available, and his diagnosis and decision making philosophy

[Robert McCann · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a prostate cancer patient I found his story very interesting when he stuck to it, but the author’s detours into philosophy became very tedious after a while.

[Growlcat · Rating 2 out of 5]

A story about a cancer victim who did everything he could to avoid castration and death from prostate cancer. The moral of the story is don't blindly accept what your physician says. Ask questions and seek 2nd opinions. Unfortunately it turned into a very unstructured rant towards the end.

[Maria Rossi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Trenchant, colors outside the lines, creative, grounded, in flight. Teaches us to measure our days. Dr S: Teach us more! How to!!

Author has the benefit of medical school background and discerning mind: what would we do in his place? Accept the verdict? Find another diagnosis? Dr S does both, mostly the latter, stitching together all the diagnoses to create a path for himself of treatment, of ambiguity, teaches us what it would be like to turn a fatal disease into a chronic one (acknowledging as well, that life, as lived, is fatal). Would I have the courage and vitality to do the same? Would I, could I support a spouse in this quest?

And - thanks for the consideration of both sides of testosterone. So relevant in these days of daily shootings...

Thanks for writing!!!!

Note: I'm a patient.