Cancer Schmancer

April 22, 2002
Drescher, most famous for her loud, nasal voice and her role on the 1990s TV series The Nanny, advises readers to "open a mouth" when dealing with their doctors in this down-to-earth account of her experience with uterine cancer. In the book—which serves as an unexpected follow-up to her 1995 memoir, Enter Whining—the actress describes living with symptoms for more than two years while shuttling from doctor to doctor without a diagnosis. She then depicts the hysterectomy that followed as well as her recovery, focusing mostly on the support she received from her friends and family and her first post-divorce boyfriend, who is 16 years her junior. She also devotes a chapter to the loss of her beloved dog, Chester Drescher. Consistently frank about her emotional ups and downs, Drescher addresses important quality-of-life issues such as fatigue and sex. Yet it is her storytelling skills and humor that make this uncomplicated book a good read. Although Drescher sometimes lapses into therapy-speak, tracing everything back to childhood, her one-liners can be priceless. Readers will warm to this straight-talking Queens native, even if they do tire of her celebrity woes (such as facing the paparazzi too soon after surgery).

May 1, 2002
Television star (The Nanny) and author (Enter Whining) Drescher details the two-year, eight-plus-doctor ordeal she endured to diagnose her uterine cancer. She goes from gynecologist (two) and internist to hematologist to oncologist/breast specialist, back to gynecologist, then to vascular specialist, neurologist, and finally gynecologist (the third) before discovering the cause of her bleeding, cramping, and painful sex. She underwent surgery, refused radiation, and continues to play in the fields of celebrity. Drescher also discusses the mechanics of putting out a weekly TV series, the breakup of her longtime marriage, and meeting a new man. If only the writing were not so pedestrian and the trivia so trivial (do we need to read about her trip to Paris?), we might have cheered for the actress, who claims that fame didn't get her better treatment (in truth, it probably did). Even Drescher's trademark humor isn't all that funny here. Fans of Drescher and her now-defunct series will want to read this; others who might pick it up will only respond, "Oy vey." For extensive patient health collections and comprehensive television collections only. Bette-Lee Fox, "Library Journal"

Copyright 2002 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2002
This would probably have made a fine article for a woman's magazine: Drescher, best known as TV's "The Nanny," gets uterine cancer and makes an inspiring recovery with the help of her family and her 26-year-old boyfriend. But since it's a book, it has to be, well . . . longer. Consequently, we get every detail of how Drescher felt before, during, and after treatment; all the embarrassing tests she had to go through; how her "kishkes "(Yiddish for insides) were affected; and way too much about bodily functions. (Note to Fran: when, as you report, your editor tells you enough already with your bowel movements, believe her.) Is there some helpful information here? Yes--although you may not be misdiagnosed by eight different doctors blinded by your fame, as Drescher suggests her physicians were. Still, you might have eight not-very-good doctors, so the information about what symptoms to be aware of and how long recovery takes is useful. Drescher's story is more than a little reminiscent of Gilda Radner's" It's Always Something" (1989), which did not have as happy an ending. A healthy Drescher will be making all the talk-show rounds, so expect some demand. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)