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Literature Annotations
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| Genre | Novel (227 pp.) |
| Keywords | Abandonment, Body Self-Image, Caregivers, Childbirth, Children, Death and Dying, Depression, Disease and Health, Doctor-Patient Relationship, Family Relationships, Grief, Illness and the Family, Medical Advances, Medical Testing, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Nursing, Patient Experience, Women's Health |
| Summary | Ann, the primary protagonist, is diagnosed with and operated on for breast cancer. Her family history leads her to suspect that she may have passed the breast cancer gene on to her daughters-this assertion without having been tested. She retreats from society. Her husband leaves her and she raises two daughters, ever plagued with guilt. The two daughters, as technology advances, choose to have themselves tested. One daughter, tests positive for BRCA-2; the second daughter is not tested, but is diagnosed with breast cancer.
The mystery becomes: from which parent did the women inherit the gene? While the younger daughter struggles with her progressive cancer, the older daughter goes in search of the genetic contributor. Since this becomes a search for an answer, the answer remains up to the reader to pursue. The angst created by the unanswered questions makes up the bulk of the intrigue, and may emulate real life struggles with this particular disease.
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| Commentary | The author, an oncologist, presents a plausible scenario for both the genetic science and the personal and family turmoil potentially created by these medical advances. The story raises a number of questions about testing/non-testing for genetic markers, as well as the emotional chaos created by the uncertainty suggested. |
| Publisher | iUniverse |
| Edition | 2007 |
| Place Published | New York |
| Annotated by |
Willms, Janice L. |
| Date of Entry |
12/27/07 |