I had spent so much time studying literature at Stanford and the history of medicine at Cambridge in an attempt to better understand the particularities of death, only to come away feeling like they were still unknowable to me. Paul Kalanithi attemptcambridgedeath share on social
Human knowledge is never contained in one person. It grows from the relationships we create between each other and the world, and still, it is never complete. Paul Kalanithi completecontaincreate Change image and share on social
While all doctors treat diseases, neurosurgeons' work is the crucible of identity. Every operation on the brain is, by necessity, a manipulation of the substance of our selves. Paul Kalanithi braincrucibledisease Change image and share on social
The diagnosis was immediate: Masses matting the lungs and deforming the spine. Cancer. In my neurosurgical training, I had reviewed hundreds of scans for fellow doctors to see if surgery offered any hope. I'd scribble in the chart 'Widely metastatic disease - no role for surgery,' and move on. But this scan was different: It was my own. Paul Kalanithi cancerchartdeform share on social
Words have a longevity that I do not have. Paul Kalanithi longevityword Change image and share on social
The good news is that I've already outlived two Brontes, Keats, and Stephen Crane. The bad news is that I haven't written anything. Paul Kalanithi badbrontecrane Change image and share on social
Before my cancer was diagnosed, I knew that someday I would die, but I didn't know when. After the diagnosis, I knew that someday I would die, but I didn't know when. But now I knew it acutely. Paul Kalanithi acutelycancerdiagnose Change image and share on social
I knew medicine only by its absence - specifically, the absence of a father growing up: one who went to work before dawn and returned in the dark to a plate of reheated dinner. Paul Kalanithi absencedarkdawn Change image and share on social
Before operating on a patient's brain... I must first understand his mind: his identity, his values, what makes his life worth living, and what devastation makes it reasonable to let that life end. Paul Kalanithi braindevastationend Change image and share on social
The root of disaster means a star coming apart, and no image expresses better the look in a patient's eyes when hearing a neurosurgeon's diagnosis. Paul Kalanithi comediagnosisdisaster Change image and share on social