The Patient

Near the beginning of the book, Jessie, our protagonist neurosurgeon, is doing a practice run with "Artie," the robot that will assist her in removing brain tumors.
"... This particular cancer, a glioblastoma, was among the most virulent of all brain tumors."
I had a sister, who suffered with brain tumors growing and being removed, and going through chemo and radio, for 21 years. She finally succumbed to a most virulent tumor, that had the least success of being treated by chemo and radiotherapy. She died at the age of 46. She was a sister who always had my back, and it was so fucking unfair that life treated her like that.
The tumor she had before the one that killed her was called a malignant anaplastic oligodendroglioma. They give ugly show more frightening names to ugly frightening killers.

This protagonist neurosurgeon character is given lines that I have my doubts any neurosurgeon in real life would use:
"Sarah reached out and took Jessie's hand.
'My chances this time?'
Jessie pondered the question with solemnity.
'That depends,' she said finally. 'have you been giving generously when the plate's been passed around?'
'of course.'
'in that case, I think we're in good shape. I'm a pretty experienced surgeon, and God only knows you're a damned experienced patient. Together with the power of your offerings to the church, I don't see how we can miss.' 'Well what if I said I never give anything when that plate comes around?' show less

I do enjoy a good medical thriller however I kind of thought this balanced on the edge of being a medical thriller and, well something else.

Yes, it's set in the world of neurosurgery, the 'villian' does have a brain tumor that he needs to have removed and yet I felt that the medical side of things was merely a vehicle for the hostage situation and action sequences to be portrayed with. To me the story of the inflate ego of the chief surgeon who ends up killing a patient through incompetence and failure to acknowledge his limitations could have been a novel in its own right without the additional hoopla the criminal-with-a-tumor aspect brought to the book.

Overall, the book was decent but I don't think it was on the same level as the show more better Robin Cook medical thrillers. show less

This was worlds better than the last Michael Palmer book I read. I actually stayed up half the night trying to finish it - it was pretty exciting and very interesting.

Palmer's books are my reading Halloween candy. I'm just a sucker for their plot goodness and easy reading. The patient is no exception. A veteran assassin has a brain tumor and chooses assassin methods to get rid of it.

As the parent of a child in remission from a brain tumor, I found this book fascinating and accurate. I probably would not have read this book during or immediately after diagnosis and treatment, but now that we are six years out, I can appreciate a story (sometimes farfetched) that explores a scary disease and cutting edge treatments.

"Neurosurgeon Jessie Copeland words at the very frontier of neurosurgery, developing technology that could revolutionize the treatment of brain tumors. But her work brings her to the attention of a infinitely dangerous man. Claude Malloche is brilliant, remorseless, a terrorist without regard for human life. He is also ill with a brain tumor considered to be inoperable. Nothing can stop Malloche from getting to the woman he believes can cure him. For those caught in his path, the nightmare has just begun... and no one is more aware of the stakes than Jessie Copeland. In brain surgery there are no guarantees - but that's exactly what Malloche demands. With disaster just one cut away, Jessie faces the most harrowing case of her life - and show more the price of failure may be thousands of lives.." - Bantam jacket notes.
A medical thriller, similar to some Robin Cook stories, a tense page-turner that is not as far-fetched as it appears. show less

Michael Palmer is an M.D. that also happens to be a very good writter of suspense stories. And this is one of them. With the daily advances in medical research, the procedures in this book are not far off. But even more important. This book is a fun and fast read. you will be turning the pages to see what happens next. If you like suspense, read it.