After You Hear It’s Cancer-a book review

“After You Hear It’s Cancer” by Dr. Lori Leifer and John Leifer offers a comprehensive guide for navigating cancer diagnosis and treatment. Drawing on personal experiences, the authors provide practical advice on various stages of cancer care, including diagnosis, treatment, and post-treatment challenges, along with resources for support and advocacy.

updated November 7, 2025

This information is current as of the date of original publication or update. It may have changed by the time you read this. I invite you to fact-check what you read here.

Please do not use this information for diagnosis or treatment purposes. Before making health decisions, discuss with your physician or other qualified healthcare provider.

After You Hear It’s Cancer

A Guide to Navigating the Difficult Journey Ahead

By John Leifer with Lori Lindstrom Leifer, MD

available on Amazon, read a sample at this affiliate link

Dr. Lori and John Leifer

Dr. Lori Leifer, a radiation oncologist, was well qualified to author a book about cancer. As a physician who treats cancer with radiation, she has extensive training and experience managing patients diagnosed with this devastating disease.

(Note: the photos and graphics are for illustration and are not associated with the book. The book links are affiliate links for possible compensation to this blog.)

However, her professional knowledge expanded to a new level when she found a lump that turned out to be cancer. Then she and her husband, John faced the daunting task of confronting cancer as a patient and the patient’s spouse.

chance of developing breast cancer by age 70-National Cancer Institute
Source: National Cancer Institute (NCI)

They turned this life-changing experience into another chance to help the people she has spent her career caring for. Together, they wrote this book offering personal and professional guidance to help cancer patients navigate the journey.

Joining them are other families dealing with cancer who candidly share their experiences and what they have learned along the way, both positive and negative.

Cancer- the difficult journey

The Liefers’ guidance follows the same path as cancer patients. First, there is a diagnosis, followed by a review and planning of treatment options.

Then there is the active treatment phase, which involves some combination of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.

Finally, there is life after the treatments. Each phase has its own issues to navigate, which they explain with specific and understandable advice.

A mammography on left and a Magnetic resonance image (MRI) on right. Breast imaging technology has changed over the years. Note MRI’s enhancement ability to confirm diagnosis.
Mitchell D. Schnall, M.D., Ph.D. University Of Pennsylvania
Creator:Unknown Photographer, Public domain

Navigating the journey

In part I, Diagnosis and Treatment Planning, they review how doctors diagnose and stage cancer, and how that influences treatment. They discuss when and why to get a second opinion, how genetic testing can help, selecting doctors and facilities, and considering a clinical trial.

This image shows a triple-negative breast cancer cell (MDA-MB-231) in metaphase during cell division. Tubulin in red; mitochondria in green; chromosomes in blue. A better understanding of how mitochondria play roles in tumor cell division may provide new therapeutic targeting strategies to stop tumor cell growth.National Cancer Institute \ Univ. of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
Creator:Wei Qian-public domain

Part II, During Active Treatment, they discuss the practical aspects of paying for cancer care and how caregivers fit into the treatment plan.

Other vital topics include pain control, managing side effects, and the importance of nutrition and exercise. They also review why and why not to consider complementary therapies.

There are different subtypes of women’s breast cancer. Knowing which subtype is important for guiding treatment and predicting survival. This graphic was created for the Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, 1975-2011, published in 2015. Source:
National Cancer Institute (NCI), public domain

In part III, After Initial Treatments Are Over, they acknowledge the challenge of cancer survivors and what to consider when treatment is ineffective. Sometimes patients and families must face “difficult decisions,” with guidance on when to stop curative treatment and use hospice care.

Guidance

All throughout the book, the Leifers recommend “asking questions”. Each section concludes with a list of specific questions to ask.

The book ends with a list of Resources, including advocacy and support groups, websites on cancer treatment and research, foundations and other nonprofits, government websites, and professional associations.

Some of these are

Recommended for “those who hear its cancer, their families, and friends

I recommend this book to families navigating this “difficult journey.” Those wanting to understand and support friends and co-workers with cancer will find the advice useful.

Since cancer is common and can strike any family, everyone should consider reading it proactively.

Finally, this general approach to diagnosing, treating, and living with a serious illness can be applied to other serious or life-threatening diseases

About the authors

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a review. The book was published in 2015 by Rowman and Littlefield.

The University of Kansas Cancer Center shares Dr. Leifer’s story at this link, Doctor Becomes Breast Cancer Survivor.

John Leifer is a senior health care executive, consultant, academic, and writer, including four novels. He is also an accomplished photographer.

Exploring the HEART of health

I thank NetGalley and the publishers for asking me to review this book, especially the Leifers for sharing their story.

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Dr. Aletha

The Leifers’ books are available from Bookshop.org. Visit my online shop at this link.

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Celebrating Life after Cancer

Celebration of Life Mural-The mural was created to honor those surviving the disease of cancer. The mural’s tiles are inscribed by cancer survivors and represent the continuous flow of life.

Aletha Cress Oglesby, M.D.'s avatar by Aletha Cress Oglesby, M.D.

The Democratic Party’s views on marriage, family, and gender

Democrats celebrate America’s history of religious pluralism and tolerance, and recognize the countless acts of service of our faith communities, as well as the paramount importance of maintaining the separation between church and state enshrined in our Constitution.

This completes my review of the Democratic platform’s positions on health and related issues. The Republican platform review was posted a few days ago. If you’ve been following so far, you’ve noticed differences and a few similarities in their stances.

These final two posts show the widest points of differences between the two major parties, probably because these issues reflect the widest differences in our American society-views on marriage, family, reproduction, and sexuality.

As you read all the posts, and especially these two, you may react to positions positively or negatively, but I hope you will also consider carefully why you agree or disagree and why others think the way they do.

Remember the Republican platform was written in 2016 and the Democratic platform in 2020. Much has happened in the past 2-6 years including a presidential election, widespread demonstrations across the country including an assault on the nation’s Capitol building, challenges to voting procedures, a novel viral pandemic, unemployment, inflation, and a new war in Europe. And after 50 years, the reversal of Roe vs. Wade, has prompted challenges and changes in reproductive law across the country.

I have not included every mention of these topics as they are numerous and scattered throughout the platforms. Some are redundant. Many are statements of belief but do not propose any specific action.

The topic headings match those in the platforms so you can easily reference the original document. I have also included outside links for clarification and context.

I hope you will take the time to read the full text of both platforms before the midterm elections on November 8, 2022.

Supporting Faith and Service

Religious freedom is a core American value and a core value of the Democratic Party. Democrats will protect the rights of each American for the free exercise of his or her own religion. It will be the policy of the Democratic Administration to advocate for religious freedom throughout the world.

Democrats celebrate America’s history of religious pluralism and tolerance, and recognize the countless acts of service of our faith communities, as well as the paramount importance of maintaining the separation between church and state enshrined in our Constitution.

Democrats will

reject the Trump Administration’s use of broad religious exemptions to allow businesses, medical providers, social service agencies, and others to discriminate.

increase funding and support for security investments and protection at houses of worship.

will confront white nationalist terrorism and combat hate crimes perpetrated against religious minorities.

Protecting Women’s Rights

Democrats will

fight to guarantee equal rights for women, including by ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment and at long last enshrining gender equality in the U.S. Constitution.

take aggressive action to end pay inequality, including by increasing penalties against companies that discriminate against women and passing the Paycheck Fairness Act.

Democrats are committed to ending sexual assault, domestic abuse, and other violence against women, including the epidemics of violence against Native American women and transgender women of color.

Democrats believe every woman should be able to access high-quality reproductive health care services, including safe and legal abortion.

We will

oppose and will fight to overturn federal and state laws that create barriers to women’s reproductive health and rights, including by repealing the Hyde Amendment and protecting and codifying the right to reproductive freedom.

take action to protect the rights of pregnant women in the workplace, including by requiring employers to make reasonable accommodations for pregnant and breastfeeding workers and those who have recently given birth and enacting paid sick days and universal paid family and medical leave.

Protecting LGBTQ+ Rights

Democrats applaud this year’s (2020) U.S. Supreme Court decision that made clear that employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity violates the law, but we know we still have work to do to ensure LGBTQ+ people are treated equally under the law and in our society.

We will

fight to enact the Equality Act and at last outlaw discrimination against LGBTQ+ people in housing, public accommodations, access to credit, education, jury service, and federal programs.

work to ensure LGBTQ+ people are not discriminated against when seeking to adopt or foster children,

protect LGBTQ+ children from bullying and assault, and

guarantee transgender students’ access to facilities based on their gender identity.

ensure federally funded programs for older adults are inclusive for LGBTQ+ seniors.

Recognizing that LGBTQ+ youth and adults suffer from significant health disparities, including mental health and substance use disorders, Democrats will expand mental health and suicide prevention services, and ban harmful “conversion therapy” practices.

We will

ensure that all transgender and non-binary people can procure official government identification documents that accurately reflect their gender identity.

stop employment discrimination in the federal government, and will restore full implementation of President Obama’s executive order prohibiting discrimination by federal contractors on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

Democrats are committed to ending the homelessness crisis, including among LGBTQ+ youth. We will fight to end violence against transgender Americans and particularly against Black transgender women, who are disproportionately victims of assault and homicide, and will prioritize the investigation of hate crimes against transgender and non-binary people.

Securing Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice

Democrats are committed to protecting and advancing reproductive health, rights, and justice. We believe unequivocally, like the majority of Americans, that every woman should be able to access high-quality reproductive health care services, including safe and legal abortion.

We will repeal the Title X domestic gag rule and restore federal funding for Planned Parenthood, which provides vital preventive and reproductive health care for millions of people, especially low-income people, and people of color, and LGBTQ+ people, including in underserved areas.

Democrats will

fight to overturn federal and state laws that create barriers to reproductive health and rights.

will repeal the Hyde Amendment, and protect and codify the right to reproductive freedom.

We condemn acts of violence, harassment, and intimidation of reproductive health providers, patients, and staff.

We will

address the discrimination and barriers that inhibit meaningful access to reproductive health care services, including those based on gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, income, disability, geography, and other factors.

oppose restrictions on medication abortion care that are inconsistent with the most recent medical and scientific evidence and that do not protect public health.

We recognize that quality, affordable comprehensive health care; medically accurate, LGBTQ+ inclusive, age-appropriate sex education; and the full range of family planning services are all essential to ensuring that people can decide if, when, and how to start a family. We are proud to be the party of the Affordable Care Act, which prohibits discrimination in health care on the basis of sex and requires insurers to cover prescription contraceptives at no cost. These efforts have significantly reduced teen and unintended pregnancies by making it easier to decide whether, when, and how to have a child.

We believe that a person’s health should always come first. Democrats will protect the rights of all people to make personal health care decisions, and will reject the Trump Administration’s use of broad exemptions to allow medical providers, employers, and others to discriminate.

Protecting LGBTQ+ Health

We condemn the Trump Administration’s discriminatory actions against the LGBTQ+ community, including the dangerous and unethical regulations allowing doctors, hospitals, and insurance companies to discriminate against patients based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Democrats will

reverse this rulemaking and restore nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV/AIDS in health insurance, including coverage of all medically necessary care for gender transition.

take action to guarantee that LGBTQ+ people and those living with HIV/AIDS have full access to needed health care and resources, including by requiring that federal health plans provide coverage for HIV/AIDS testing and treatment and HIV prevention medications like PrEP and PEP, gender confirmation surgery, and hormone therapy.

Democrats support increased community HIV prevention and testing programs which target Latino, Black, Asian American and Pacific Islander, Native American, and other at-risk communities to address the increases of HIV. Democrats will recommit the federal government to ending the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2025.

Democrats are proud that the Obama-Biden Administration lifted the discriminatory lifetime ban on blood donation by healthy gay and bisexual Americans. We will work to ensure blood donation regulations are based on science, not fiction or stigma and that no American, when seeking to donate blood, will face more stringent limitations than any other simply because of who they are.

Supporting High-Quality K-12 Schools Across America

Democrats are committed to safe and supportive school climates for students and educators alike.

Democrats also believe that all schools should have adequate resources to expand school-based health services and hire guidance counselors, social workers, nurses, and school psychologists to help support students’ mental health needs, address trauma, and promote social and emotional development.

Democrats will

make sure schools do not engage in, and appropriately address, discrimination, bullying and harassment related to sex, including sexual orientation and gender identity; race; national origin; immigration or citizenship status; religion; disability; and language status.

protect the rights of transgender students.

The Democratic Party Platform

exploring the HEART of voting

Dr Aletha