Cancer The Emperor Of All Maladies

[Shameka Roessler]

Onein two Australian men and women will be diagnosed with cancer by the age of 85 years. A diagnosis of cancer is all encompassing and can feel insurmountable. Cancer unleashes its wrath when least expected and without forewarning, destroying the benevolent and treacherous, the elite and destitute, the learned and ignorant alike. With its omnipotent cellular artillery, cancer continues to defy biochemical warfare and evade death. Pulitzer Prize winner, Siddhartha Mukherjee, eloquently explores the history and biography of cancer in The emperor of all maladies, a live entity within a living vulnerable host in an age-old battle for survival that is ultimately dependant on chance.

Oncology and the breadth of cancer treatments are continuing to expand at an exponential rate. With the prolific advances in cancer screening and advances in life expectancy, our cancer patient cohort will likewise expand. Although published in 2010, this story is relevant and provides a comprehensive understanding of cancer cell biology to a general practitioner with a critical mind to better appreciate and demystify The emperor of all maladies.

Author Siddhartha Mukherjee refers to cancer as the "emperor of all maladies." This seems a fitting title for an illness capable of invading the healthiest of bodies and conquering everything in its path. In Harry Potter-like fashion, the "name that shall not be named" cancer is often reduced to "the C word."

We have, of course, taken some giant leaps forward in the understanding of cancer and moved out of the shadows of exploratory and often deadly interventions into the light of scientifically sound targeted therapies. Despite this, any cancer survivor knows that the confirmation of a cancer within one's body is only the beginning of a dark night of the soul. Personally, I have often repeated the line, "I was never really afraid that I would not survive cancer, but I was convinced that chemotherapy would kill me."

When it comes to cancer and its treatment, what's old is new. Despite astounding medical advances, the disease continues to carry a heavy weight and its treatment comes at the cost of living cells and tissues. Anyone who has sat through the first round of chemotherapy and the obligatory recital of the list of possible side effects most likely leaves with the thought that was pounding in my head when I returned for my second session: "I can't do this anymore."

If history teaches us anything, it is that all empires, and those that rule over them, eventually collapse under the weight of their own vanity. Let us both praise and bury Caesar by exhausting all efforts to strip cancer of its power to rob, pillage, and plunder what is most precious: the undying spirit of life that is truly immortal. Let's do this by living with dignity despite cancer's attempts humiliate us. Let's continue to create unity when cancer tries to isolate us. Let's live from our hearts while cancer confounds the mind. Finally, let's refuse a "new normal" in which illness reigns and instead live the realization that love is the ultimate conqueror and the heart our true home.

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