I learned a lot about how they figured out some cancers are genetic. The stories about the specific people affected by gene mutations made this a readable nonfiction story.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6475027035

Fascinating. Ingrassia, partly because he's wound his own family history into his work, has written an accessible and informative volume about cancer research. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It was an unexpectedly engrossing read,

“A heartbreaking story of family loss and an inspiring story of scientific achievement”
The quote above is author Lawrence Ingrassia’s summary description of cancer research during the last six decades, especially the Li-Fraumeni syndrome that is the focus of A Fatal Inheritance. It is also an excellent description of his book, which was outstanding on both topics and which I would recommend to a very broad audience.
The stories of the families who experience the results of their “fatal inheritance” were heartbreaking even for me, and I do not know any of the people affected. It is hard to imagine being a member of the family and living through it, and I suspect that the author, who DID live through it in his own family, shed more than one tear as he wrote them. The illnesses and deaths are hard to take, such as the eight-year-old girl battling her second cancer, but there are also other understandable but perhaps less expected episodes. I was touched by a father recommending that his son, who had experienced several cancers growing up and lost several relatives to cancers, not marry and have children. The son responds that if his father had done that he himself would not be sitting there that day! In another family with widespread cancer a woman happily tells her family that a test has shown she does not have the gene in question only to be greeted with anger by her cousin’s obviously envious husband.
The descriptions of the scientific research, controversies, and discoveries were equally compelling. For a layperson like me, the heat of the disputes between the scientists who were pursuing genetic connections to cancer and those who were certain the cancers were caused by viruses was fascinating and eye-opening. I learned quite a bit about the subject, which was presented in a way that readers unfamiliar with this field of biology can understand, but I did not feel, as I often do, that the author was talking down to me. It made me smile and admire the researchers even more to read about their gathering of data like family histories in the years before the internet and largescale computers simplified such pursuits to such a degree that we tend today to take it for granted. Also impressive was the cost of such research, e.g., Warner Lambert pledged FORTY million dollars to help pay for simply the last phase of clinical trials for a test of a new drug.
Having a family member develop cancer is difficult for any family. The distress caused when multiple members suffer and often die from cancer is hard to imagine, especially when the cancer develops in young children, as it often does in Li-Fraumeni syndrome. I thank the author for sharing his family’s story and for educating readers like me on the connection between genes and cancer.
I received an advance review copy of A Fatal Inheritance from NetGalley and Henry Holt and Company.

This was a well written memoir as well as a history of cancer research. The author shares his personal family story of cancer in his family, intertwined with other families' stories of cancers occurring through out the family, and the history of researchers attempt to document and research why some families share a cancer trait. While the topic is hard, the author is able to show the power of research and medical advances to demonstrate hope for future generations. Interesting read.

Truthfully, I was reluctant to start this book after requesting it from the publisher through NetGalley for two reasons. I didn’t want to read a highly technical book like ‘ Code Breaker’ ( which I read but sludged through, UGH ). And I was concerned it might be overwhelmingly filled with grief and despair.
It was neither .
Initially, I was intrigued by the title, cover and premise of this book… and my intrigue was held through to the end of the book. The cover seems to illustrate ( literally) that the book is about a family… and yes, it’s about several families plagued with numerous multi-generational cancer diagnoses.
It’s easily digestible material, heavily peppered with stories of several families plagued by all too frequent, all too early ( childhood for example ) diagnosis through multi-generations of the families. The book starts off in personal and compelling tales that immediately drew me in and never felt overwhelmingly sad or lacking in purpose. The personal stories are hard to read about yet that’s the point… Cancer doesn’t discriminate but in this book’s stories it does crop up, often times with one family member getting a cancer diagnosis more than once ( sometimes several times ) through their lifetime… however long or short their life is.
I didn’t find the book as emotionally wrenching as one might think because the medical research elements help bring clarity and purpose to the more personal stories within the book. My interest never let up while reading the book and I found it easy and compelling to come back to each day. Educational, informative and engaging…

Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this novel. This book was difficult to read with the large group of people referenced, it was a bit too dry although it is a fascinating subject and you feel greatly for the families involved.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Henry Holt Publishers for the advance ebook copy of “A Fatal Inheritance” by Lawrence Ingrassia. Ingrassia interweaves his family’s tragic medical history, including the loss of his mother, his two sisters, his brother, and his nephew to cancer; with the scientific hunt for the causes of familial cancers. It was initially thought that familial cancers might be linked to viruses, environmental triggers; or a variety of other causes; but a team of determined researchers spent decades fighting professional disdain to unravel the DNA linkage that would expose the real cause of many familial cancers - mutations in DNA. This in turn would lead to the ability to test for these gene mutations, including the breast cancer genes BRAC1 and BRAC2. An incredibly compelling tale, I raced thru this book as one who - like millions of other Americans - has had family members affected by cancer: my husband and I lost 3 of our 4 parents to cancer. The chapters alternate between the scientific research, which might seem dense to the casual reader without a scientific or medical background, and the deeply affecting portions about Mr. ingrassia’s family. I would highly recommend to those with an interest in science and/or medicine as well as those with family’s affected by cancer.

A Fatal Inheritance: How a Family Misfortune Revealed a Deadly Medical Mystery by Lawrence Ingrassia is a very highly recommended deeply personal memoir of a family's medical tragedies merged with a medical thriller of cancer research as scientists work to discover answers.

Lawrence Ingrassia's family story is one where death from cancer is prevalent. In his family Ingrassia lost his mother, two sisters, brother, and nephew to different kinds of cancer at different points in their lives. In the 1960s his family became one of several that intrigued Dr. Frederick Pei Li and Dr. Joseph Fraumeni Jr. in their research into why some families experienced so many deaths by cancer. They began collecting records and analyzing data to understand cancer clusters in some families.

They published their results in a paper which showed that there was likely a genetic component involved and this discovery was named the Li–Fraumani Syndrome. Their paper was first published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, and wasn't widely known. Later genetic researchers were intrigued by the syndrome and with help from Li and Fraumani and the samples they collected from families they were able to discover a mutation in the p53 gene. This inherited mutation is responsible for the higher risk of cancer. Its discovery was groundbreaking in cancer research and offers hope for potential future research.

Ingassia does an excellent job sharing his family's and others deeply personal and emotional stories while also covering how the cancer research of Li and Fraumeni’s and others evolved. The merging of the personal tragedies with the ground breaking discoveries work well together and help create a tension and anticipation for some hopeful discovery for a future cure. The question of genetic research in regards to ethical considerations and personal privacy is also considered. Thanks to Henry Holt & Company for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

The review will be published on BookBrowseBarnes & Noble and Amazon.

Lawrence Ingrassia's A Fatal Inheritance mixes memoir and the history of cancer research for an engaging and heartbreaking tale. Ingrassia recounts the story of multiple families with generations of cancer ravaging large numbers of family members, often hitting quick young in life. And even if one survives one bout of cancer, it is often the case that they be hit with another (and potentially another) form of cancer. It is brutal to read about what these families have gone through. Because it's not something like breast cancer that scientists suspected may have a genetic link, this was potentially just seen as bad luck. Over time, Ingrassia lays out to the long search scientists went through and the final race to the finish line to identify a genetic mutation that causes this recurrent cancer. If someone has the gene, their children have a 50/50 chance of getting it. Ingrassia heartbreaking recounts being the lone child in his family not to have the gene. This is a deeply moving book on the personal front, and the medical mystery was fascinating. He also provides some complex ethical questions about the condition (should people test for it? should it be edited out of the gene?). This was great!

The format of this book reminds of While You Were Out, also written by a journalist (Meg Kissinger), which melded her family history of mental illness and reporting on how it has been treated and viewed by society.

I really enjoy a book that I can both learn something new wrapped up in the package of a memoir. Because I also work in the medical research field, this book was complete catnip to me.

Thank you to Henry Holt & Co. via NetGalley for the advance reader copy in exchange for honest review.

Very interesting read. The author did a good job of thoroughly describing the scientific history of the area of cancer genetics and how it related to his own family’s experience. The dense science focused chapters were followed by a chapter or two focusing on the author’s family history which helped reinforce the topic’s relevance. I already had an interest in genetics due to my own medical history, but this was fascinating. It also highlighted how complex the human genome is and how long discoveries can take. The author also explored some of the ethical implications and dilemmas from said discoveries (and technologies) which some may not have initially thought about. Highly recommend for anyone interested in learning more about genetics and the role they play in disease development, medical research, etc.

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me. I love a medical mystery especially when it’s true. This just had way to many people to keep track of and I needed a family tree for each family. It was engaging and it hooked me from the start but I just couldn’t keep up with all the people.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the early copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

A Fatal Inheritance is a deep dive into the hereditary development of cancers. The author was inspired by his own family to research the topic for this book. The evolution of scientific theories regarding the cause of cancer is covered, as well as the treatments that have been developed as a result of this information. I was fascinated by this book! The author does a great job of sharing the material without making it dry or boring. I also liked how he shared the stories of his family members throughout the book, reminding the reader that while this book is about science, it is also very personal and sad. This was a very interesting, well-written book.

A Fatal Inheritance is a poignant exploration of familial cancer tragedies, weaving together personal loss with groundbreaking scientific discoveries. Through meticulous research and inspiring storytelling, the author navigates the complexities of genetic inheritance, urging readers to embrace hope and resilience in the face of adversity.

Author Lawtence Ingrassia tells not only his family's story of losing his mother and all three of his siblings to cancer but of the dedicated research Dr. Fraumeni and Dr. Li had done for decades to track the genetic connection in families and using gene therapy for treatment. For anyone who has had cancer in their family or is interested in gene therapy treatments, this will be a book you will want to read.

For me, having had cancer, but not a family connection, this book was interesting to me, although sometimes tedious reading. But I am forever grateful for cancer researchers, oncologists and those like this author who can tell their heartbreaking story as a way to enlighten others.

For those with cancer: do your homework, fight with all the weapons we have in today's arsenal against cancer, and never give up hope!

My thanks to Net Galley, Henry Holt & Co, and Macmillian Audio for advanced copies of the e-book and the audiobook.

A Fatal Inheritance is a really powerful combination of the scientific advancement of genetically inherited cancer risk and reflection of the personal impact it has had on the author’s family. More narrow in focus than The Emperor of All Maladies, this book focuses specifically on Li-Fraumeni Syndrome and mutations on the P53 gene that are genetically inherited and result in dramatically higher rates of cancer and at younger ages for many people that inherit it. The book charts the history from when Li and Fraumeni first suspected that cancer risk could be genetically inherited, through the advancement of knowledge, preventative testing and treatment, to the latest advancements that may someday help eliminate or manage the P53 gene. The book is both helpful and devastating. As someone who lost her mother at a relatively young age there were moments in this book where I wanted to cry and throw up all at the same time. For the loss of my mother, and for my fears for myself, despite no indication of genetic risk in my family. If you have personally been impacted by the loss of a loved one this could be a really difficult read for you. If you have a history of cancer in your family it might be enlightening and scary. No matter what, it’s really well done and written so that a reader that is not versed in medical language understands the science and story Ingrassia shares.

A heartbreaking book. Lots if medical jargon but very well written and accessible to the non science reader.
Ingrassia artfully tells his family's and others tragic stories about Li–Fraumeni syndrome, a terrible hereditary cancer syndrome.
He writes about the discovery and research done on Li–Fraumeni and other cancer syndromes, along with hopeful future therapies.
He speaks about losing almost his entire immediate family to cancer at young ages. A devastating book.

Although I would not use this book for teaching, I think it would work well in a medical humanities or narrative medicine course. It's very gripping and full of tragedy but also resilience. The writing is graceful and powerful.

Thank you NetGalley and Henry Holt & Co for this advanced reader’s copy. Although they can sometimes be heartbreaking, I love reading memoirs on the history of scientific research and breakthroughs. The memoir aspect in telling about the science gives the reader real feeling and connection to the subject. I especially related to this book as a nurse who spent a couple years caring for cancer patients and giving chemotherapy. It was fascinating (and also heartbreaking) to hear about the discovery of the p53 gene mutation and Li-Fraumeni Syndrome and how this affects a person’s hereditary risk for developing early onset cancer. Genetic testing is amazing to be able find out your risk based your family history or remove it all together if you choose. And now there are some immunotherapy treatments for certain mutations as well, which I have given. We have come so far and are continuing to make strides. I greatly enjoyed reading this author’s story about his family and I’m glad he doesn’t have the mutated gene, but I’m sorry for all the loss he has endured. Thank you so much for sharing your family’s story with us.

One part of this book is academic. The other part reveals heart-breaking stories of those that have succumbed to cancer.

Lawrence Ingrassia educates readers with remarkable progress that has been made over the years with genetic cancer research. Between chapters of the scientific reports, he inserts his personal story of what happened to his family. Sadly, he lost his mother at a young age, and later his two adult sisters and brother along with his nephew – all to different types of cancer.

Ingrassia knows more about cancer than most people. He writes about how his family and others have been studied. He said epidemiologists have faced intense competition for funding from the National Cancer Institute driving them to want to be first to make advancements.

This book is well written and informative. It’s also very sad and complicated with some of the reports. It opens up a lot of unanswered questions related to those affected by this devastating disease. This book will appeal to those interested in hereditary factors of cancer, those interested in genetic research and others who are curious.

My thanks to Henry Holt & Company and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book with an expected release date of May 14, 2024.

Highly recommended. Ingrassia has produced an easy-to-read history of cancer as an hereditary illness. Bravo!!