Back To Life: A Bladder Cancer Journey: Foreword by Sia Daneshmand, M.D.

Back To Life: A Bladder Cancer Journey by Frank Sadowski is a first-person narrative covering the symptoms, diagnosis, treatment decisions, surgery and recovery of one man diagnosed with advanced bladder cancer in 2007. While doubtless of interest to bladder cancer patients, the book is written as an exciting adventure with many twists and turns that will appeal to all. While ultimately a story of survival, it carries strong themes of persistence, commitment, friendship and love. The frankness of the storytelling is skillfully offset with lighter touches and humor, and the story races to an unexpectedly heart-pounding ending.

"As a Stage 4 melanoma survivor, I found myself deeply moved by - and profoundly grateful for - Frank Sadowski's honest and enlightening account of what it's really like inside the cancer experience. But more than that, simply as a reader, I was enthralled with his effortless gift for compelling storytelling. "Back to Life" is full of humor, suspense, and grit, a medical drama that brims with heart and soul."
-- Mary Elizabeth Williams, staff writer at Salon.com and author of "Gimme Shelter" and "A Series of Catastrophes and Miracles: A True Story of Love, Science, and Cancer."

From the foreword by Sia Daneshmand, M.D.:
This is the first book of its kind. There is a paucity of public attention to this prevalent disease, and bladder cancer research is severely underfunded. Back to Life: A Bladder Cancer Journey highlights this important subject and encourages patients and physicians alike to understand the dilemma from the patient's perspective and to appreciate the anguish they go through following the initial consultation. It is important to know that patients can fully emerge from the initial difficult recovery period following a radical cystectomy to lead unrestricted, productive lives. Through this honest and moving account of his cancer journey, Frank shows us how this can be done. His story should prove enlightening and inspiring to patients grappling with illness and difficult treatment decisions, as well as to medical professionals and indeed to anyone with an interest in how persons facing profound challenges find it within themselves to cope wisely and courageously.