Views from the Other Side of the Looking Glass

Book excerpt: Something was wrong--very wrong. Even the receptionist knew it. They would fit me in. Suddenly I was on a high-speed train--going someplace that I did not want to go. I didn't have a reservation. I didn't have a destination. It didn't matter. I had the symptom. I could come on board. As the train sped rapidly down the track, my primary care physician arranged an array of appointments with other physicians and various diagnostic tests. Descriptions of the pictures of my inner body did not verify the presence or absence of cancer. Instead they suggested a diverse assortment of diagnoses. It was like having to choose an answer for a multiple-choice question but choosing the answer that I liked best--most likely a fibroid--was not an option. Fiews from the Other Side of the Looking Glass: Reflections on My Journey with Ovarian Cancer captures author Terry Downey's experiences with a silent but deadly cancer. Downey describes finding herself on a high speed train going places that she did not want to go. As she progressed through diagnosis, surgery, chemotherapy, and radioimmune therapy, those who made the journey with her helped to transform her feelings of hopelessness and despair into feelings of hope and courage.