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A Fatal Inheritance: How a Family Misfortune Revealed a Deadly Medical Mystery

Lawrence Ingrassia
May 14, 2024
Categories:Non-Fiction

Weaving his own moving family story with a sweeping history of cancer research, Lawrence Ingrassia delivers an intimate, gripping tale that sits at the intersection of memoir and medical thrillerIngrassia lost his mother, two sisters, brother, and nephew to cancer―different cancers developing at different points throughout their lives. And while highly unusual, his family is not the only one to wonder whether their heartbreak is the result of unbelievable bad luck, or if there might be another explanation.Through meticulous research and riveting storytelling, Ingrassia takes us from the 1960s―when Dr. Frederick Pei Li and Dr. Joseph Fraumeni Jr. first met, not yet knowing that they would help make a groundbreaking discovery that would affect cancer patients for decades to come―to present day, as Ingrassia and countless others continue to unpack and build upon Li and Fraumeni’s initial discoveries, and to understand what this means for their families.In the face of seemingly unbearable loss, Ingrassia holds onto hope. He urges us to “fight like Charlie,” his nephew who battled cancer his entire life starting with a rare tumor in his cheek at the age of two―and to look toward the future, as gene sequencing, screening protocols, CRISPR gene editing, and other developing technologies may continue to extend lifespans and perhaps, one day, even offer cures.

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Rendors (6)

2
TIME 100: Most Influential People
1
Pulitzer Prize Winner for Fiction
1
Pulitzer Prize Winner for General Non-Fiction
1
Pulitzer Prize Winners
1
Tim Ferris Show Guest
1
Unicorn CEO/Founder
Historian, journalist and writer
Tim Ferris Show Guest
Unicorn CEO/Founder
TIME 100: Most Influential People

When two young doctors came across a family riddled with cancer for generations, they wondered why and began a decades long search for the answer. In A Fatal Inheritance, a riveting narrative of their quest, Lawrence Ingrassia intertwines a deeply personal and tearful story of unbearable family loss with an inspiring story of scientific discovery that revolutionized the understanding and treatment of cancer.

Writer
Pulitzer Prize Winner for General Non-Fiction
TIME 100: Most Influential People

A Fatal Inheritance by Lawrence Ingrassia is a compelling personal chronicle of tragedy and triumph. It captures both the ineffable pain of families riddled with cancers and the remarkable research over the past half century by scientists determined to help them.

Journalist and novelist
Pulitzer Prize Winner for Fiction

When Lawrence Ingrassia lost his mother, sisters, brother and nephew to cancer, was it appallingly bad luck, or was there a common cause? This is the story of a family tragedy, a medical mystery, and the painstaking work of insightful scientists. By turns heartbreaking and hopeful, A Fatal Inheritance is a story of mortal loss and human resilience.

Journalist, author
Pulitzer Prize Winners

Fortune surely frowned on the Ingrassias―a family beset by a genetic anomaly that beamed scientific light into the twisty nature of cancer―and smiled on readers, by making its central member one of America's truly great journalists. The result is an extraordinary, empathic, medical detective story and emotional roller-coast. This is a beautiful book that will break hearts and then heal them. A treasure.

Author

Lawrence Ingrassia's quest to understand what felt like a curse on his family turns out to be one of the most eye-opening stories. The portrait he draws of his family's medical mystery and the two doctors who pioneered its treatment is a masterful work of reporting and writing, filled with unflinching honesty, empathy, and wisdom. A Fatal Inheritance is a brilliant, unforgettable book that I recommend highly.

Journalist

Spurred on by his family’s extraordinary experiences with cancer, Lawrence Ingrassia reports compassionately and comprehensively on the breakthroughs of genetic research into the illness. Through his eye-opening journalism, we learn how scientific progress really happens―in fits and starts and endless reversals, and with an endless capacity for hope.

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