After nearly three decades of providing medical care for women and men facing breast cancer, surgeon S. David Nathanson calls the survival rates today an ordinary miracle. Ordinary because the vast majority of patients now do live at least 20 years after diagnosis due to enormous progress that has been made in medicine; and a miracle too because of the intangible qualities such as faith and hope that seem key to success in battling the disease. In this book, survivors describe their experiences, emotions, and means to overcome the disease. S. David Nathanson is an esteemed, longtime surgeon who calls the survival rates today for women and men facing breast cancer nothing short of an ordinary miracle. Ordinary because the vast majority of patients live at least two decades after diagnosis, due to great advances that have been made in early detection, surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. But also a miracle because we know that key elements for a woman or man succeeding in a personal battle against breast cancer include completely intangible qualities of courage, fortitude, trust, persistence, faith, and hope. Although science cannot completely explain it, a supportive network of family and friends with those qualities also empower patient survival and recovery. In these pages, Nathanson shares stories from his patients, teaching us about the experience of breast cancer and explaining how they found and fueled the will and power to defeat the disease. Even surgeon Nathanson himself cannot fully describe what goes through the hearts and minds of breast cancer patients as they discover, deal with, and finally triumph over the diagnosis. So in this book he acts as a narrator, letting his ordinary yet miraculous cancer survivors tell their stories, certainly filled with fear of the known and unknown, and with pain, but opening up to courage, love, sometimes humor, and finally hope. It is hope that firms up their resilience; hope that initiates their fortitude. Hope is an important component of healing, says the surgeon. Seventy-one survivors, including one man, tell their stories to ilustrate every step of the experience.

This textbook describes in detail the process of cancer metastasis from a single cell in the primary site through its arduous journey to the sentinel lymph node as the main gateway and beyond to distant sites. The most up-to-date knowledge on key topics in the molecular biology, diagnosis, and treatment of metastatic cancer is highlighted by a large panel of experts. The book begins with a comprehensive overview of the genetic and molecular mechanisms that promote or inhibit cancer metastasis through lymphatic pathways to lymph nodes or through vascular pathways to distant sites, providing the reader with an essential basic knowledge. This is followed by further details on the role of the immune system within the primary tumor and the lymph node and the importance of the microenvironment at the metastatic site. The role of the sentinel lymph node in cancer metastasis is emphasized. Special attention is also given to state-of-the-art imaging techniques for the detection of early-stage cancer and cancer metastases, as well as the use of liquid biopsies in sarcoma, prostate, gastrointestinal, and lung cancer. Clinical patterns of malignant tumors arising in different organ systems are compared, described, and discussed with the goal of determining what similarities and/or differences exist. The book concludes with a detailed discussion of surgical intervention, radiation, and systemic therapy of primary and metastatic cancer, and briefly previews several emerging topics, such as the latest findings on personalized cancer therapy, cancer stem cells, unique molecular mechanisms of virus-induced cancer, the impact of the microbiome on cancer metastasis and the application of artificial intelligence in cancer metastasis research. By providing fundamental knowledge of the biological and clinical aspects of cancer metastasis, this book will be an important reference for cancer researchers, clinical oncologists, teachers, and students. Written by experts in the field, each chapter includes a summary of the chapter's key points and open-ended questions that address pressing issues in the field and encourage the reader to consider future directions.

This textbook describes in detail the process of cancer metastasis from a single cell in the primary site through its arduous journey to the sentinel lymph node as the main gateway and beyond to distant sites. The most up-to-date knowledge on key topics in the molecular biology, diagnosis, and treatment of metastatic cancer is highlighted by a large panel of experts. The book begins with a comprehensive overview of the genetic and molecular mechanisms that promote or inhibit cancer metastasis through lymphatic pathways to lymph nodes or through vascular pathways to distant sites, providing the reader with an essential basic knowledge. This is followed by further details on the role of the immune system within the primary tumor and the lymph node and the importance of the microenvironment at the metastatic site. The role of the sentinel lymph node in cancer metastasis is emphasized. Special attention is also given to state-of-the-art imaging techniques for the detection of early-stage cancer and cancer metastases, as well as the use of liquid biopsies in sarcoma, prostate, gastrointestinal, and lung cancer. Clinical patterns of malignant tumors arising in different organ systems are compared, described, and discussed with the goal of determining what similarities and/or differences exist. The book concludes with a detailed discussion of surgical intervention, radiation, and systemic therapy of primary and metastatic cancer, and briefly previews several emerging topics, such as the latest findings on personalized cancer therapy, cancer stem cells, unique molecular mechanisms of virus-induced cancer, the impact of the microbiome on cancer metastasis and the application of artificial intelligence in cancer metastasis research. By providing fundamental knowledge of the biological and clinical aspects of cancer metastasis, this book will be an important reference for cancer researchers, clinical oncologists, teachers, and students. Written by experts in the field, each chapter includes a summary of the chapter's key points and open-ended questions that address pressing issues in the field and encourage the reader to consider future directions.