Side Effects

Beyond the Diagnosis: Surviving and Thriving with Multiple Myeloma and Breast Cancer by Makeda Tené Ekakitie, BFA, MA and Rev. Cecelia B. Johnson, MSW, LCSW, ACSW
Prime Pace Publishing, 2024, 136 Pages, Paperback, Hardcover, or Kindle
ISBN: 979-8986764054

"Beyond the Diagnosis: Surviving and Thriving with Multiple Myeloma and Breast Cancer" unfolds an inspiring narrative that transcends the boundaries of typical medical memoirs. This poignant story, told through the intertwining perspectives of Cecelia B. Johnson, a 20 + year survivor of multiple myeloma, and her daughter, Makeda Tené Ekakitie, offers a rare and insightful look into the resilience required to navigate life with a relentless disease.

For more information click here
 

Four Walls: Breaking Through Life’s Challenges, One Wall at a Time: A Memoir of Battling Cancer by Ryan Scanlan
Independently Published, 2023, 336 Pages, Paperback and Kindle
ISBN: 978-8871214367

All of the blood in Ryan Scanlan’s body is someone else’s. At twenty-two years old, Ryan was diagnosed with a blood cancer called acute myeloid leukemia. Despite receiving five cycles of chemotherapy, Ryan experienced a relapse of his disease. He received two additional cycles of chemotherapy followed by a stem cell transplant for a chance at a cure. Just over two years following his stem cell transplant, Ryan began working as a pharmacist at the number one cancer center in the United States. In his memoir, he details the struggles and lessons learned throughout his journey from being a cancer patient to caring for those who suffer from cancer the same way he did. No matter the challenge he faces today, he will always remember what he learned within those Four Walls. 
 
For more information click here
 

Why: A Memoir of Love and Lymphoma by John Melithoniotes
NFB Publishing, 2023, 278 Pages, Paperback or Kindle
ISBN: 9781953610485

There is no test of a couple’s bonds like the revelation that one of them has a life-threatening disease. One of them, a husband, wife, or partner, will become a patient who may need care from the other almost constantly. This is the story of John and Marilyn, whose love of nearly forty years encounters a diagnosis of Marilyn’s Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. John’s memoir describes the complexities of how they navigated their way through a large urban cancer hospital, their daily attempts to manage the side effects of chemotherapy, and their emotional struggle to cope with a worsening crisis. He revisits key scenes from their lives in the hope of understanding their actions and the surprises in store for both of them.

For more information click here

Life Blood: Lessons From One Woman Who Survived Serious Illness Against The Odds by Cathy Koning
Silver Moon Press, 2021, 232 Pages, Paperback, Hardcover or Kindle
ISBN: 9780994324412

Cathy Koning's moving, unflinchingly honest and often humorous recollections and reflections chart her experience from shock diagnosis of AML in 2012 to cure and beyond. Treated at Melbourne Australia's Alfred Hospital, along the way, she deals with needle phobia, is admitted to ICU, her mother dies, she receives a donor transplant and marries her partner of 37 years. Cathy chronicles her journey for readers seeking a better understanding of what it's like to be a leukaemia patient.

For more information click here

Up for the Fight: How to Advocate for Yourself as You Battle Cancer from a Five-Time Survivor by Bill C. Potts

ISBN: 9781774581681
Publisher: Page Two
September 13, 2022, Paperback (208 Pages) and Kindle
 
In this valuable patient and caregiver guide author Bill C. Potts, a five-time cancer survivor, (including lymphoma four times) tells you everything you need to know to take on this fight. With empathy and honesty, he explains exactly what to expect, and shares lessons and important tips you can put into action all the way from diagnosis, to treatment, to remission, to cure, and how to face setbacks on your road to recovery. Most important you will learn how to advocate for yourself!

For more information: www.billcpotts.com

We Don’t Get To Ring The Bell: My CML Story by Anne McAuley Lopez
Publisher: Lupi Documents & Designs
December 15, 2021, Paperback (97 Pages) and Kindle
ISBN: 978-1733956130
 
Most cancer patients get to ring a bell after their last cancer treatment, but that’s not the case for CML patients like Anne. She, and her CML brothers and sisters, take a daily chemo pill to prevent the cancer from growing. While her cancer is undetectable, that isn’t a guarantee. Anne makes the most of every day. In this book, she shares her CML experience while offering guidance and resources to other CML patients and their families. She encourages anyone struggling with CML or chronic illness to choose hope. Even if you don’t get to ring the bell, there is life after diagnosis.

For more information: www.mycmlstory.com

Living with Graft-Versus-Host Disease: How I Stopped Fighting Cancer and Started Healing by Brad Buchanan, PhD
Published by Armin Lear Press, June 2021, Paperback, 189 pages (also available as e-book)
ISBN: 978-1-7371255-0-1

This 70,000 word personal narrative enriched with medical information, Living with Graft-Versus-Host Disease: How I Stopped Fighting Cancer and Started Healing, fills a huge gap in current health and wellness literature. It tells the story of the author’s survival against the odds, outlines his sometimes-rocky path to long-term recovery, and offers unique and important insights into acute and chronic GVHD.

The Big Ordeal: Understanding and Managing the Psychological Turmoil of Cancer by Cynthia Hayes
River Grove Books, February 2021, 264 pages
ISBN 978-1-63299-335-9 Print
ISBN 978-1-63299-336-6 eBook

Nothing can truly prepare you for the emotional rollercoaster of a cancer diagnosis, but The Big Ordeal will help you anticipate and respond to the psychological turmoil ahead. Written by a cancer survivor with the help of a psychotherapist and two oncologists, The Big Ordeal presents the typical emotional experience, illustrated by patient and caregiver stories. The book explains the science behind those emotions, helping you understand why you feel the way you do, and offers advice on how to cope. The book is based on interviews with over 100 patients, caregivers, oncologists, neuroscientists, and other experts.

For more information: https://thebigordeal.com

CAR T-Cell Therapy: What to Expect Before, During and After by Susan K. Stewart
Published by Blood & Marrow Transplant Information Network, 2020, 26 Pages
ISBN 978-1-7337268-4-9

CAR T-cell therapy is an exciting new treatment currently approved by the U. S. Food and Drug Administration for patients with certain types of lymphoma or acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Researchers are studying whether it can help other cancer patients as well.  If you are considering CAR T-cell therapy, this easy-to-read colorful booklet will help you understand what to expect when going through treatment.

For more information: https://bmtinfonet.org/

When Blood Breaks Down - Life Lessons from Leukemia by Mikkael A. Sekeres, MD
MIT Press, April 2020, Hardcover, 328 Pages
ISBN: 9780262043724

In When Blood Breaks Down, Dr. Mikkael Sekeres, a leading cancer specialist, takes readers on a journey that patient and doctor travel together.  Sekeres tells the compelling stories of three people who receive diagnoses of adult leukemia within hours of each other: Joan, a 48-year-old surgical nurse, a caregiver who becomes a patient; David, a 68-year-old former factory worker who bows to his family's wishes and pursues the most aggressive treatment; and Sarah, a 36-year-old pregnant woman who must decide whether to undergo chemotherapy and put her fetus at risk. We join the intimacy of the conversations Sekeres has with his patients, and watch as he teaches trainees. Along the way, Sekeres also explores leukemia in its different forms and the development of drugs to treat it—describing, among many other fascinating details, the invention of the bone marrow transplant and a treatment that targets the genetics of leukemia. The lessons to be learned from leukemia, Sekeres shows, are not merely medical; they teach us about courage and grace and defying the odds.

For more information click here

Braving Chemo: What to Expect, How to Prepare, and How to Get Through It by Beverly A. Zavaleta, MD
Sugar Plum Press LLC, November 2019, Paperback, 240 pages
ISBN: 978-1-7334565-0-0

In Braving Chemo, Harvard-educated physician and cancer survivor Beverly A. Zavaleta MD combines her medical expertise with a survivor’s insight to provide practical advice for both chemotherapy patients and cancer caregivers. This book will give you clear answers to your most urgent questions, such as: what to eat; how prevent nausea; and how to face tough feelings like fear of dying.  Braving Chemo is a valuable resource about what to expect during chemo, how to minimize the side effects, and how to live life as normally as possible when life itself is on the line.

For more information click here

Hundred Percent Chance: A Memoir by Robert K. Brown
3/3 Press 2019, 273 Pages, Paperback or Kindle
ISBN: 9781733159005

Hundred Percent Chance: A Memoir is a raw and realistic memoir about a young college student who was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia in 1990 while he was studying abroad in Lancaster, England – halfway across the world from his home in Seattle.  From battling life-threatening symptoms during a rushed, emergency departure from England, through multiple rounds of chemotherapy and complications over the next eight months, this moving, page-turning story will remind you to make the most of every day.

Sending - An Athlete Confronting Cancer by Jennifer Erin Pinkus
Blurb.com and Dorrance Publishing, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-36-803943-0 Softcover, 178 Pages
ISBN: 978-1-6470-2653-0 Ebook

SENDING is a generic term for successfully completing a vertical rock or ice climb. Jennifer Erin Pinkus approached her struggle against cancer with the determination and emotional strength she used when tackling the most challenging mountain.  When Jen received a diagnosis of lymphoma, she decided to start a daily journal describing her experience with hair loss, “chemo brain,” metallic tastes and insurance coverage. Her talent for using the written word in prose and poetry to describe coping with this horrific illness is raw and honest. It shows Jen’s courage as she faces her fears, the unknown and finally death.

Graft-versus-Host Disease: What to Know, What to Do
Published by Blood & Marrow Transplant Information Network (2018)
42 Pages - Available in English and Spanish​

Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is a complication that often occurs after a transplant using cells from a donor (an allogeneic transplant).  This booklet will help you understand the symptoms of GVHD, the organs it can affect, treatment options and steps you can take to minimize the impact of GVHD on your daily life.

For more information: https://bmtinfonet.org/

My Journey with Leukemia: The Power of Family, Faith, and Humor By Jennifer Venegas
​Published by Outskirts Press, 2018, 175 pages
ISBN: 978-1-4787-7904-9

This book outlines the personal journey of 45 year old Jennifer Venegas who was diagnosed with Ph-positive Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.  Jennifer chronicles her daily experience as she undergoes chemotherapy and an allogeneic transplant, then deals with Graft vs Host Disease (GVHD).  From a faith-based perspective, she describes the realities of managing her treatment, her changing roles, and the financial impact of her cancer diagnosis.

Living with Cancer - A Step-by-Step Guide for Coping Medically and Emotionally with a Serious Diagnosis by Vicki A. Jackson, MD, MPH, David P. Ryan, MD and Michelle D. Seaton.
Johns Hopkins University Press, 2017, 351 pages
ISBN 1421422328 Hardcover (also available in paperback and e-book)

Doctors Vicki A. Jackson and David P. Ryan have crafted a step-by-step guide aimed at helping people with cancer grasp what’s happening to them while coping physically and emotionally with treatment.  It is a practical, easy to read and comprehensive reference covering everything from understanding one’s diagnosis to managing symptoms and side effects and dealing with end of life concerns.

For more information: https://www.press.jhu.edu/

Your Brain After Chemo: A Practical Guide to Lifting the Fog and Getting Back Your Focus by Dan Silverman, MD, PhD and Idelle Davidson
Da Capo Press, 2010, 284 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0-7382-1391-0

Chemotherapy saves lives, but new studies-including research led by coauthor Dr. Dan Silverman-reveal that the agents used to kill cancer cells may also impair normal brain function. If you've undergone chemotherapy, perhaps you feel like you?ve lost your edge or that you?re no longer the person you once were. Until recently, oncologists often discounted or trivialized "chemo brain." But the authors present plenty of evidence to the contrary; thankfully, you can rest assured that you?re not alone in feeling this way-and that you can do something about it. Calling on cutting-edge scientific research and the inspiring stories of survivors (including Davidson's own experiences with chemotherapy and its effects), this easy-to-read book will forever change how you think about your brain after chemo. Perhaps most important, it offers much-needed strategies to improve memory and focus, and an invaluable nine-step program to help keep your brain sharp. Your Brain after Chemo gives you the coping skills to move on with your life.

100 Questions & Answers About Cancer Symptoms and Cancer Treatment Side Effects By Joanne Frankel Kelvin, RN, MSN, AOCN & Leslie B. Tyson, MS, APN-BC, OCN
Joans and Bartlett Publishers, 2 Edition, 2010, 228 pages
ISBN: 9-7807-6377-7609