The Diary of a Breast

The Diary of a Breast

Elisa Seagrave Faber, pounds sterling9.99, pp 287, ISBN 0 571 17446 9

Talk of an epidemic of breast cancer may seem alarmist, but in the United Kingdom alone the current death rate equals the loss of a fully occupied jumbo jet every week. Cathy Read's book, with its Stateside perspective and highly combative style, maintains that breast cancer is avoidable, but that the focus has shifted from prevention to early detection and treatment. Read is very suspicious of the medical profession and its vested interests and poses some uncomfortable questions about this multibillion dollar industry.

Why, she wonders, has there been no notable increase in survival rates despite the widespread screening of premenopausal women …