I Am Not My Breast Cancer: Women Talk Openly About Love and Sex, Hair Loss and Weight... by Ruth A. Peltason

Peltason, an editor and breast cancer survivor, founded and hosted the First Person Plural Web site project, an online forum for women facing the disease. Their dialogue provides the content for this book, culled from the entries of 800 women across the U.S. and around the world. Peltason organizes the material into three general parts: Diagnosis, Living with Breast Cancer and The Big Picture, with such subtopics as Sharing the News, Being Womanly and Anniversaries and Milestones. Participants use screen names for privacy, approaching their disease with candor and freely discussing their feelings about their bodies and their relationships. At times, those overcome by anger and fear far outweigh those with a bright outlook, but when these survivors look in the mirror at the conclusion of the text, many envision a hopeful future. Perhaps the most poignant entries are from younger women, some of whom have been driven into early menopause and infertility by chemotherapy. Although this is an informative book, some survivors may discover that these raw entries churn up disturbing emotions; others will find comfort in these voices, and in the knowledge that they aren't alone—either in their sorrow or in their strength and courage. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Owner Reviews, Ratings, Comments and Criticism
As a man whose wife is undergoing chemotherapy, I wanted to read this book for several reasons. I wanted as much understanding as possible about the emotional aspects for all involved, I wanted to see how well I was doing as the significant other and I wanted to Understand what I might be missing/overlooking about the whole process. This book did an incredible job answering all three questions. The distillation of wisdom, anger, hope and total honesty of the 800 women involved in the creation of this book is amazing. The brief, but succinct comments, collected on such a diverse arrangements of topics will not only provide helpful paths for those undergoing treatment, but also for ANY family member, friend or co-worker sincerely interested in understanding and supporting the individual battling the disease of breast cancer. This book should be in every public and health science library as it will do for the soul and spirit what other books cannot.