All of us have cancer cells in our bodies. But not all of us will develop cancer. This international bestseller examines what we can do every day to lower our chances of ever developing the illness, and also explains how to increase the chances of recovery from it.
Dr David Servan-Schreiber was first confronted with cancer when he was working as a medical resident. Already a recognised pioneer in neuroscience, by his own admission he had all the arrogant and immortal confidence of a 30-year-old overachiever. Then he discovered he had cancer of the brain, and his life changed forever.
Servan-Schreiber went on to research alternative medicine, founding and directing the Center for Integrative Medicine at the highly conservative University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
This revised edition of his bestselling book is the culmination of his experience in the field of cancer, both as a doctor and as a patient. It is his personal story, the story of the cases he has come across, and the medical and scientific story of the disease and its mechanisms. He looks, in particular, at the relation between a body and its cancer; at the immune system; and at the roles played by nutrition, emotions, and physical activity in containing cancer.
Servan-Schreiber does not dismiss conventional medicine, nor is he anti-pharmaceutical: he empowers the reader with the understanding and the tools to tackle cancer alongside conventional treatments — or, better yet, to help avoid cancer altogether.
‘The author was diagnosed with a brain tumour … so he set out to research everything that is known, anywhere in the world, about cancer and what causes it. Then he drastically changed his life. Did it help? He wrote the book 14 years after his diagnosis.’
Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times
‘A unique blend of memoir, advice and science, Anticancer empowers the reader with the tools to tackle cancer. This book could save your life.’
Nature & Health
View all reviews
‘I like this book for many reasons. Servan-Schreiber is well-informed and well educated in areas of medicine, yet he writes this book so anyone wanting the information can understand it. There is no panic, no scare tactics, or feeling sorry for himself. The memoir portion of Servan-Schreiber’s book is written touchingly and calmly. If your life or the life of a loved-one is touched by cancer in any way, I would recommend you reading this book. Servan-Schreiber offers hope by using easy methods, such as diet, to fight cancer.’
Marilyn Dalrymple, Valley News
‘Meticulously researched and easy to read, Dr Servan-Schreiber’s
Anticancer is a fascinating book that provides critical information on
the enormous influence of lifestyle factors on the development of
cancer. Combining his own experience in succesfully fighting cancer
with the most recent developments in cancer research, Dr Servan-Schreiber presents a courageous, sensible and rationale
discussion on how integrative medical approaches may be used in the
fight against this devastating disease. Anticancer is an absolutely
indispensable guide for cancer survivors and anyone who wants to adopt healthy lifestyle habits in order to prevent cancer.’
Dr Richard Beliveau
‘Enormously compelling evidence and arguments for participating in our own health by supporting our deep natural capacity for healing. Everybody should read this book and enact its simple but potentially life-saving recommendations. David Servan-Schreiber speaks with a powerful voice from both personal experience with cancer at a young age, and from his life’s calling as a physician and neuroscientist.’
Jon Kabat-Zinn, Professor of Medicine emeritus and author of Coming to Our Senses and Arriving at Your Own Door
'A mesmerizing, brilliant, astonishing, and well-documented journey detailing the extraordinary successes and remarkable failures of efforts to wrestle with cancer in the modern world.'
Devra Davis, National Book Award finalist and author of The Secret History of the War on Cancer
