Understanding Cancer

Understanding Life

by Robin Hesketh

One in two of us will develop cancer at some point in our lives and yet many of us don't understand how cancers arise. How many different kinds of cancer are there? What treatments are available? What does the future hold in terms of developing new therapies? This book demystifies cancer by explaining the underlying cell and molecular biology in a clear and accessible style. It answers the questions commonly asked about cancer such as what causes cancer and how cancer develops. It explains how DNA makes proteins and how mutations can corrupt those proteins. It also gives an overview of current therapies and how treatments may advance over the next decades, as well as explaining what actions we can take to help prevent cancer developing. Understanding Cancer is an accessible and engaging introduction to cancer biology for any interested reader.

258 pages, Paperback

Published June 9, 2022

Reviews

[Stetson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The term "cancer" is commonly used to describe a variety of diseases that share certain features such as uncontrolled cell proliferation. During the last several decades numerous researchers have tried to reveal the causes of cancer through the study of mutations and their impact on phenotypes. The main underlying idea has been that mutations, either caused by accident or by environmental factors, are responsible for the uncontrolled proliferation of cells in which they occur.

Robin Hesketh PhD is Emeritus faculty in the biochemistry department of the University of Cambridge who has published research on cancer-related biomedical topics. In Understanding Cancer, Hesketh delivers a concise primer on cancer, touching on the history of cancer and its epidemiology, busting up common myths, and exploring what it means when scientists say that "cancer is a genetic disease." The work covers all the basics and hammers home that cancer is a somewhat inevitable externality of being a complex organism; somatic mutations accumulate over time and eventually provoke uncontrolled proliferation of cells. Hesketh's epistemic humility and overall balanced approach on certain controversial topics in cancer benefits the work as well.

Understanding Cancer is well organized, but it can feel more like reading a detailed outline than a book sometimes. On the plus side, there is a lot of information that is delivered clearly and succinctly. As someone with background in the field, I would have enjoyed more detailed explorations of certain topics, including more description of seminal discoveries/experiments, more commentary on the latest -omic approaches in precision oncology, and a deeper exploration of targeted and immuno- therapeutics. The final portion of the work delves into these compelling topics to some extent but undersells them. The book would also benefit from a more robust bibliography for readers interested in pursuing deeper knowledge.

I think this a good book for a young biomedical students interested in getting a broad understanding of cancer quickly or to general interest readers curious about cancer. However, there are lengthier and more compelling alternatives that can serve the same functions, such as Siddhartha Mukherjee's The Emperor of All Maladies and The Gene.

[Maret Vilbaste · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is scientifically accurate, written in a clear and simple way that even non-patients can understand. I liked how the author was able to explain complex processes without being overly complicated, while maintaining credibility and depth. This series “Understanding Life” is truly worth reading for anyone who wants to understand complex health topics without the confusion.