The announcement of a serious diagnosis is a solemn moment when directions shift, priorities change, and life appears in sharper focus. It is also a moment when a story takes shape. It is a story we are able to imagine, even if we haven’t experienced it firsthand, because the moment of diagnosis is as pervasive in popular media as it is in medicine.

Diagnosis: Truths and Tales shares stories told from the perspectives of those who receive diagnoses and those who deliver them. Confronting how we address illness in our personal lives and in popular culture, this compelling book explores narratives of diagnosis while pondering the impact they have on how we experience health and disease.