American Splendor: Our Cancer Year back

In January 1990 Harvey notices a lump on his groin. Never one to strike when the iron's hot, he leaves it for a while; not until it's too late but after a point when the following year might have been easier. The lump turns out to be cancer, it's removed, but he still need to go through chemotherapy, a treatment that plans to kill the cancer without killing the patient.

Chemotherapy is basically filling the body full of extremely toxic substances, breaking down the body's defences, a very nasty procedure that tests the patient and those looking after them. The book is co-written by Harvey's wife, Joyce, and it's her sudden realisation ("when did it become our cancer year?") that gives the book its title. I've not seen the AMERICAN SPLENDOR film, but the trailer made her out to be a hypochondriac, a bit of a sniffling mess. Here she's a tower of strength, knowing how to get the best out of the system and knowing how to cajole Harvey into doing what's best for him.

In the end it's all worth it. The final test comes through and all the badness has been eradicated from his system. You get to see the couple living through a very uneasy year and it's not always an easy read, but you learn not to put things off and to hold onto those around you.