Swimming Upstream: My Struggle and Triumph Over Cancer and the Medical Establishment: New Hope in Cancer Treatment
Adult; Memoir; (Market)
As an experienced pediatrician, Sajjad Iqbal, MD, had long enjoyed using his medical expertise to treat children’s illnesses and alleviate their parents’ concerns. Suddenly, however, he was on the other side of the divide.
As Iqbal began to battle severe facial paralysis, misguided and obstinate doctors became an obstacle to finding a correct diagnosis and treatment. Iqbal’s doctors believed that he had Bell’s palsy, a temporary, benign condition. But Iqbal rejected that theory. He knew enough about medicine and his own body to suspect a far more deadly cause—cancer of the parotid (salivary) gland.
Initially, Iqbal couldn’t convince the so-called experts to listen and his doctors rushed forward with a flawed treatment plan including unnecessary surgery.
Given a 30 percent chance of living two years—he has survived 15 years, overcoming repeated recurrences of cancer by charting his own course of treatment.
In this extraordinary memoir, Iqbal recounts how he advocated for his health and relentlessly fought for a correct diagnosis and treatment and then embarked upon researching and formulating the appropriate treatment plans when none were offered or available from the experts. As he reveals how he unraveled this medical mystery, facing repeated setbacks, you will be inspired to take charge of your own healthcare. Iqbal’s experiences convincingly show the importance of speaking up and pushing back against medical professionals’ apathy and arrogance.
Plot/Idea: 7 out of 10
Originality: 7 out of 10
Prose: 5 out of 10
Character/Execution: 6 out of 10
Overall: 6.25 out of 10
Assessment:
Plot: Iqbal’s memoir is well plotted, and (for the most part) he skillfully guides readers through the various stages and complications of his cancer while avoiding diversions or irrelevant details. There aren’t any major surprise events in the book, but the details regarding the evolution of Iqbal’s physical symptoms and the treatments he undergoes are themselves gut wrenching and surprising enough to hold interest.
Prose: Iqbal’s writing is clear, controlled, and readable, but his attempts at wit and humor are hit or miss. He is at his best when he draws on his expertise to elegantly simplify medical terminology and biological processes for the lay reader.
Originality: The cancer survivor memoir has been attempted by other capable writers (some of them mentioned in this book), but Iqbal stands out for his thoughtful approach to the subject matter. As a doctor and writer, Iqbal is uniquely suited to tell this story, and he does it well by conveying a genuine interest in medicine and combining it with the high stakes narrative of his life and the immigration story.
Character Development: Most of the characters in Iqbal’s memoir are sketched briefly, and sometimes thinly, but they effectively advance the survival story that he is trying to tell. Readers get a rich sense of the narrator’s family and culture, as well as his sensibility and the nature of his professional and personal relationships.
Date Submitted: May 29, 2017
