Off Our Chests: A Candid Tour Through the World of Cancer

by John Marshall, Liza Marshall

Overview

Winner of the 2022 Living Now Book Award for Health/Wellness

Featured In The Washington Post's "10 Books To Read In May 2021"

A surprisingly open memoir co-authored by the married duo of a world class oncologist and a cancer survivor about love, pain, hope, strength and resilience while navigating the overwhelming breast cancer advocacy movement.

Off Our Chests recounts the story of Liza and John’s experience with her diagnosis and treatment. Written in alternating voices, Liza details her treatment, the complex decisions she had to make throughout her course of chemotherapy and radiation, including clinical trial participation and an elective double mastectomy, the added complexity of being treated at the cancer center of which John was the chief of hematology and oncology, and the emotional impact of knowing she may die as a young woman with young children.

John, who lost his own mother to cancer at the age of 13, provides an inside look into the world of cancer care and research, but also the perspective of someone who understands the medicine but who was unprepared for assuming the role of caregiver and worried husband. John adds insights into his world of running the clinical operations of the cancer center where Liza would receive her care, commentary on the breast cancer machine, the need for clinical research, the high cost of cancer care, and an easy to understand explanation of the clinical and scientific background of oncology.

While they both felt that they were already expert commentators on their own “Cancer Channel” during the course of Liza's illness, they both came to realize how little understanding they truly had of what a cancer diagnosis does to the patient, caregivers, children, family members, and friends. Liza and John share their most intimate thoughts, including many that were previously unsaid—even between the two of them. Both gain an understanding of the other’s life, a deeper appreciation of what it means to be a cancer patient, and of the emotional strains of being an oncologist where so many of the patients die on their watch.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781646870486
Publisher:	Ideapress Publishing
Publication date:	05/04/2021
Pages:	335
Sales rank:	532,142
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

John Marshall is a medical oncologist and a professor at Georgetown University, and he is an internationally recognized expert in gastrointestinal cancers and the development of new treatments for cancer. He has been outspoken on controversial issues in cancer research, including his criticism of the dominance and success of breast cancer advocacy and research at the unfortunate expense of other specialties.

Liza Marshall is an attorney, who retired from the practice of law in 2005 to manage her family. She then became involved in the establishment of a cancer support organization in the Washington, DC area, and she remains deeply involved in their work. In 2006, when she was 43 years old, Liza was diagnosed with a high-risk Stage 3 triple negative breast cancer.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Off Our Chests offers an unusually intimate and revealing glimpse into the reality of dealing with a cancer diagnosis—when you are in the unique position of playing every role: doctor, patient and spouse. At once deeply personal and bracingly universal, this book can offer cancer patients and healthcare workers alike the chance to meet one of life’s most devastating situations with a rare sense of mastery and, yes, even hope.”
KATIE COURIC American TV Journalist

“This is a wonderful and engaging book - part memoir, and in equal part an ‘autopsy’ of the cancer establishment in this country. Written with immense care and kindness, it reminds us of how much we’ve achieved, and how much remains to be done.”
DR. SIDDHARTHA MUKHERJEE Pulitzer Prize winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies

“Off Our Chests is a must-read for anyone going through cancer. As with so many, I was blindsided by my cancer diagnosis. This book is a captivating and informative playbook for anyone thrown into the cancer game, but it is also a candid story about one couple’s experiences with cancer which strongly resonated with me and my own recent cancer journey.”
RON RIVERA NFL Head Coach of Washington Football Team

“For those who face their own difficult diagnoses, this is a sort of What to Expect When You’re Expecting, an invaluable guide for cancer patients and their families who may be struggling with what comes next. A powerful and deeply personal story of one couple’s battle against breast cancer – a couple that happens to include a leading oncologist – told with honesty, candor and humor.

SUSAN PAGE Washington Bureau Chief of USA TODAY

“This is an important book for the doctors and researchers in the pharmaceutical industry that illuminates the personal impact (both positive and negative) of cancer treatment. A remarkable book that anyone who has lived in the grim world of cancer will recognize, this is also the story of a couple’s love and sacrifice as they bravely face an uncertain future together.”
HON. PETER B. TEELEY Author of The Complete Cancer Survival Guide, U.S. Ambassador to Canada and Senior Vice President, Amgen

“Courageous, hopeful, heartbreaking, and a great read. I’ve known Dr. John Marshall, and Liza Marshall for more than a decade and Off Our Chests brings into light so many things that we all could learn from. As a parent, a patient, a doctor, a friend, or a caregiver, this is an incredible story from two of the best humans in this world.”
MICHAEL SAPIENZA CEO of Colorectal Cancer Alliance

“Off Our Chests is the kind of book I wish I had when I faced cancer. Written by the husband-and-wife Marshalls (he’s an oncologist; she, the cancer patient), this book is perfectly balanced left-and rightbrain, which is to say a highly useful guide to entering the territory of cancer land and an empathetic best friend to support you along the way. It’s also a genuine love story—but not some sappy ‘Love Story.’ Recommended highly.”
STEVEN PETROW Contributing columnist at The Washington Post

“Every student, Resident, or Fellow who will care for patients with cancer should read this book! As a high grade, metastatic cancer ‘survivor’ (to date) I stepped between the pages of John and Liza Marshall’s “Off Our Chests” and could not put it down. The open candor of dual perspectives from patient and long time spouse is captivating. Add the dedicated spouse’s role as a senior oncology academic leader, and the tension is set. Each of us as patients with cancer enter roles as husbands, wives, and members of families suddenly facing our own mortality. The lessons from this wonderfully written ‘gift’ to each of us are invaluable.”
DR. STEPHEN RAY MITCHELL Dean Emeritus of Medical Education, Georgetown University

“The incredible journey of what happens when the accomplished spouse of an eminent oncologist develops an oft-fatal cancer. I laughed, I cried, I identified. Together they teach us the way forward.”
DANIEL D. VON HOFF, M.D., F.A.C.P Medical Oncologist, Translational Genomics Research Institute/City of Hope

“A must-read, inspirational memoir that will resonate with all those touched by cancer. Liza and John share personal reflections and insights into the cancer journey, and provide deeply meaningful perspectives from the patient, caregiver and oncologist point of view.”
MARTHA RAYMOND, MA Executive Director, GI Cancers Alliance and Founder, Raymond Foundation

“Off Our Chests” is ‘Edutainment’ at its best. This book provides a unique, valuable perspective that will be of great interest to oncology health care professionals and their patients.”
NEIL LOVE, MD President, Research to Practice

“In Off Our Chests, we are invited into the lives of Liza and John as Liza shares the cognitive dissonance of a young wife, mother and community activist with a serious triple-negative breast cancer, and husband John chronicles his dual roles of caregiver and world-renowned oncologist. The startling honesty, humor and intimacy of their writings are magnetically binge-worthy, as they open the kimono of Liza’s threatened survival remodeling their marriage and careers, no holds barred.”
DR. JOYCE O’SHAUGHNESSY Chair, Breast Cancer Program, Baylor University Medical Center, Texas Oncology, US Oncology, Dallas TX

“This book is both a practical roadmap for cancer patients and caregivers and an inspirational story of a loving partnership between one of those patients and her caregiver, who just happens to be an oncologist. As such, it’s a must-read for patients, but also medical professionals, advocates and everyone who has been touched by cancer.”
CAROLYN ALDIGÉ Founder and CEO, Prevent Cancer Foundation

“Dr. Marshall and Liza’s account of their journey, from both the patient perspective, and just as importantly, the caregiver’s perspective, is an honest, emotional, enlightening, and at times, page-turning glimpse of the ups and downs and the never-ending decision-making that follows a cancer diagnosis. It’s heart-wrenching to hear from an oncologist turned caregiver as he navigates his wife’s journey with breast cancer and begins to appreciate what his own patients and their caregivers go through, and the enormous ripple effect that it has on so many people. Anyone who has cared for a loved one with a cancer diagnosis will find their story brutally honest and hopeful at the same time.”
JULIE FLESHMAN President and CEO, Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PANCAN)

“Liza and John Marshall have captured in vivid detail all that I felt and experienced after my stage 3 triple-negative breast cancer diagnosis in 2009. From the symbolism of the tattered pink ribbon on the cover to the post-traumatic stress that every caregiver and cancer patient eventually comes to know, their breezy style and wit captures the roller coaster that every cancer diagnosis brings. This book is an essential read.”
JENNIFER GRIFFIN National Security Correspondent, Fox News

Editorial Reviews

A couple share their up-close and personal story of trouncing cancer.

In this memoir, the Marshalls take readers to the front lines of their triumphant battle against a cancer that invaded not only the wife’s body, but also their 22-year marriage. Liza was 43 years old when she was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer, one of the most virulent and deadly forms of the disease. Ironically, her husband, John, was a world-renowned oncologist who had witnessed more than 1,700 of his 2,500 patients die. He voices strong opinions about the state of medical care in America in these pages. The book stands out among other first-person accounts about surviving cancer because of the authors’ striking frankness throughout the 340 pages. That’s not to say that the story is a downer. Although the account is flat-out honest and holds back nothing, the Marshalls inject lighter touches that balance the gravity of the situation. (“A brief history of my breasts. There were two of them.”) The couple’s emotional experiences at times diverge. A telling moment was their shopping trip to choose a wig for Liza. She and the couple’s children embraced the excursion as a fun family adventure. But John was roiling inside because the trip made Liza’s disease more real than he could handle. He notes that cancer is an entire family experience and that “whatever skeletons are hiding in the closet rattle louder.” A rare blowup happened when Liza wanted an expensive medication for her unrelenting nausea. John retorted: “Do you know how much that drug costs?” The Marshalls’ book is exceptional because it is multifaceted, deeply insightful, and brings readers right into the room. Liza delivers extensive details, including that her diagnosis came a few days before Thanksgiving at 2 p.m. Monday, Nov. 20, 2006. After months of agonizing tests, she opted for surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation and participated in a clinical trial, with John largely supporting her selections. He was against or had mixed feelings about other choices but stayed silent because he felt they should be her decisions. Ultimately, the treatments were successful and Liza remains cancer-free.

An astute and valuable resource for both cancer physicians and patients.

KIRKUS REVIEWS

From the Publisher