At age 31, Dr. Servan-Schreiber was an ambitious physician and neuroscience researcher who reveled in discovery and glittering science projects. He was a founding member of the U.S. branch of Doctors Without Borders and a rising star in neuropsychiatry. When a volunteer for a brain scan experiment failed to show up, he slid into the scanner himself and discovered a tumor in his brain. Further tests revealed that he had brain cancer.
After conventional treatment, he asked his oncologist what he should change so that the cancer would not come back. His answer was perfectly stereotypical: "Go back to your usual way of life. It won't make much difference." So he continued living his life as he had before, eating a diet high in sugar and red meat, exercising little, and abandoning an earlier interest in meditation.
The cancer returned a few years later and he endured a second surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Dr. Servan-Schreiber then decided to use his medical and scientific training to explore and investigate how he could help his body to better prevent cancer. His discoveries led to the best selling book:
Anticancer - A New Way of Life.
he's 37.
