CHULA VISTA, Calif. (PRWEB) October 08, 2014
The opportunity to examine the mysteries of his adoption and tell the success story about his cancer treatment inspired author Paul Raffer to craft a novel that cleverly meshes fiction and reality. In “Skin” (published by Xlibris) readers will follow the life and struggles of a doctor who was diagnosed with an incurable skin cancer.
As the doctor faces his mortality, and attempts to avoid it, his life parallels a New York family immediately recognizable as having a common thread with him. The doctor was adopted and has no known siblings or relatives. Eventually, this doctor is offered an experimental stem cell transplant protocol and he matches someone from the international stem cell bank. The reader is led through the preparation for and the actual stem cell transplantation as seen through the eyes of an experienced physician, with detailed treatments and unexpected side effects. They will also have a tour about the cutting edge of cancer treatment at one of the world’s great institutions and its effect on two families separated by 3000 miles.
Dissecting the mysteries of adoption while treating readers to an emotional roller coaster ride of stem cell treatments, “Skin” highlights life’s challenges that add depth to humanity’s existence. Personal as it is universal in theme, this story is essentially that of two families, touched by and brought together by cancer.
“Skin”
By Paul Raffer
Hardcover | 6 x 9in | 200 pages | ISBN 9781499053388
Softcover | 6 x 9in | 200 pages | ISBN 9781499053395
E-Book | 200 pages | ISBN 9781499053371
Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble
About the Author
This is the first novel by Paul Raffer, MD, a neurologist from Chula Vista, Calif., who like the protagonist in this book was adopted in New York City and grew up on a chicken farm on the Jersey shore. He attended Franklin and Marshall College where he played football and acted in the Green Room Theatre. He attended The New Jersey Medical School in Newark and received the Faculty Award at graduation for outstanding contributions to the school. He interned at Mt. Zion Hospital in San Francisco where he met and married his wife Donna, and they moved to San Diego for neurology training at UCSD where he was Chief Resident. Raffer had a solo private practice of neurology for 32 years until he got cancer and sold the practice. Raffer and Donna have four daughters and three grandchildren. After his treatment he has returned to work, part time as a Neurologist and medical-legal expert. He plays golf and tennis, and loves sports and music. He is especially fond of red wine and is known to sing at the Godfather Restaurant in San Diego after a few glasses.
Xlibris Publishing, an Author Solutions, LLC imprint, is a self-publishing services provider created in 1997 by authors, for authors. By focusing on the needs of creative writers and artists and adopting the latest print-on-demand publishing technology and strategies, we provide expert publishing services with direct and personal access to quality publication in hardcover, trade paperback, custom leather-bound and full-color formats. To date, Xlibris has helped to publish more than 60,000 titles. For more information, visit xlibris.com or call 1-888-795-4274 to receive a free publishing guide. Follow us @XlibrisPub on Twitter for the latest news.