In 2015 he published his memoirs in “The Death of Cancer”, co-authored with his daughter and science-writer Elizabeth DeVita-Raeburn. It is a fascinating read, including some interesting cases he has dealt with (including his own experience of prostate cancer). DeVita is bold and forthright, but also has the wisdom of many, many years of experience. There are two statements in his book that particularly resonated:

         i.         Firstly, the importance of achieving a total remission, aggressively if necessary: “But no one is ever cured of a metastatic cancer that doesn’t first go into complete remission. Setting the goal on getting a complete remission is so important I thought about naming this book “Complete Remission.” p. 257

        ii.         Secondly, the need to keep a patient going for “next new thing” to come along:

“One of my mantras, as I’ve said, is that we don’t necessarily have to have the magic bullet to cure a cancer. We need a treatment to keep the patient going so he can reap the benefits of the next new thing that will come along. Progress is swift.”  p.31.

Dr John Marshall

Dr John Marshall is Chief, Division of Hematology/Oncology, Medstar Georgetown University Hospital, Professor of Medicine and Oncology, Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Georgetown University and Director, Otto J. Ruesch Center for the Cure of Gastrointestinal Cancer. In 2021, he and his wife Liza published a book recounting the successful treatment of Liza’s breast cancer. John and Liza write alternate chapters, independently, to give an interesting perspective of how they each experienced the journey. At the same time Dr Marshall uses the book as an opportunity to talk about his philosophies and perspectives in the treatment of cancer. The book is Off Our Chests: A Candid Tour Through the World of Cancer. We have used two important messages from this book:

          i.         The appropriate use of aggressive treatment to cure Liza’s breast cancer, which was borderline advanced, and

        ii.         The need to carefully manage the quality vs quantity trade-off in cancer treatment.

See also an interview with Liza and John Marshall in Cancer Today based on the book: Cancer, From the Other Side

James P. Allison, Ph.D.

The treatment of cancer is being significantly enhanced with the recent introduction of immunotherapy. We quote fairly extensively from articles covering Dr Allison in this regard. Dr Jim Allison is an American immunologist and Nobel laureate who holds the position of professor and chair of immunology and executive director of immunotherapy platform at the MD Anderson Cancer Center at the University of Texas. His research and energy lead to the implementation of the first immune checkpoint inhibitor. The following articles covering his contributions and thoughts are contained in the text:

Press release: The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2018

The Contrarian Who Cures Cancers, (Quanta Magazine February 2020)

Nobel Prize-winning researcher: The future of immunotherapy for cancer treatment, MD Anderson Cancer Centre November 2019

If you want to read further on his story and the birth of cancer immunotherapy, we recommend the book: Graeber, Charles. The Breakthrough

Henry Scowcroft

A particularly interesting treatment of the latest science along with twists and turns of an advanced cancer can be found in Cross Everything: A personal journey into the evolution of cancer. Born into a family of scientists and medics, Henry Scowcroft is an experienced science writer, with a Bachelors degree in biochemistry and a Masters degree in Science Communication. Since 2003 he’s worked in a variety of roles at Cancer Research UK, all of which have centred around one thing: communicating the complex, emotive issues around cancer to a variety of audiences, including patients, the public, journalists, policy-makers and the charity’s supporters. In 2016, his partner, Zarah, was diagnosed with advanced bladder cancer from which she subsequently died. His book tracks the course of her disease. Given his background in cancer science and a close working relationship with Prof. Swanton, who we have already met above, (and special access to some of Swanton's lab analysis), Scowcroft describes in some detail the genesis, evolution and resistance of Zarah's tumour.