WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT CANCER

Oncologist Juneja offers a thoughtful guide, covering everything from treatment to the emotional weight of the disease.

With this straightforward, honest work, the author considers the illness from many angles. “It’s the cells in your body misbehaving,” he explains. “They keep growing and don’t do what they’re told to.” Juneja also discusses diagnosis and treatment. A group of medical specialists are depicted as an athletic team taking the field; as pathologists zero in on treatment, cancer DNA is compared to a coding error. Finally, Juneja explores the emotional impact: ongoing monitoring, fears of recurrence, and the long tail of remission. He even gently recognizes the possible reality of dying from cancer: “It’s not punishment and it’s not failure—it’s a part of life that no one avoids forever.” The audience encompasses readers managing their own diagnoses and those longing to support a sick loved one; emotional reflections and coping strategies are pitched to both groups. Shepeta’s accompanying illustrations, featuring an assortment of characters diverse in terms of race and age, are calmly functional but still dynamic. This sober yet heartfelt book addresses many questions readers have and will certainly raise more, but most importantly, it gives voice to fears youngsters hold inside. As Juneja notes in the backmatter, “Cancer isn’t simple…but…knowledge really does make scary things less scary.”

A smart, succinct exploration of a difficult subject.