Cancer Virus: The discovery of the Epstein-Barr Virus

by Dorothy H. Crawford, Alan Rickinson, Ingolfur Johannessen

The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) was discovered in 1964. At the time, the very idea of a virus underlying a cancer was revolutionary. Cancer is, after all, not catching. Even now, the idea of a virus causing cancer surprises many people. But Epstein-Barr, named after its discoverers, Sir Anthony Epstein and Dr Yvonne Barr, is fascinating for other reasons too. Almost everyone carries it, yet it is only under certain circumstances that it produces disease. It has been associated with
different, apparently unrelated, diseases in different populations: Burkitt's Lymphoma, producing tumours in the jaw, in African children; a nasal tumour in China; glandular fever in Europe and the USA; and the majority of cases of Hodgkin's Disease everywhere.

This book tells the story of the discovery of the virus, and the recognition of its connection with these various diseases - an account that spans the world and involves some remarkable characters and individual stories.

Genres: Science, Medicine, Medical, Nonfiction

216 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Dorothy H. Crawford is professor of medical microbiology and assistant principal for public understanding of medicine at the University of Edinburgh. She has written a number of books on viruses.

Reviews

[Sophy H · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book on the Epstein-Barr virus.

Comprehensive, informative, detailed and objective.

I was fascinated.

If you're not a fan of academic style writing, then I'd say leave this alone, but if like me, you're a medical textbook freak (!!), go for it, there is so much to learn.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating read about the Epstein-Barr virus and its relationship to disease. Anyone interested in virology, oncology or epidemiology should find it intriguing.

[Michelle Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Its amazing we can discover these things and amazing to think about what we have yet to discover. Informative read but also compelling and enjoyable.

[Satheesh Kumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not for the layperson, but a good, detailed overview of the tumours caused by EBV.

[Gemma · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first half of this book is gripping. The story of how Burkitts lymphoma was studied in Africa, where a clear epidemiology link to the environment pointed to an infectious agent. The agent was found to be EBV, the same virus that causes glandular fever. Fascinating.

The questions surrounding how the same virus can cause no disease in some individuals, glandular fever in others, and cancer in others is so very interesting. The book is a tour de force on many aspects of genetics, cellular biology and immunology. I really loved thinking again about the intricate workings of our cells.

The only reason I have given the book 4 stars not 5, is that towards the end the book became a little bogged down in immunological detail and lost a little of it's gripped nature.

As a biochemist no longer involved in research, this book re-ignited a long held interest and makes me want to research more scientific breakthroughs in medicine.

[Patricia Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book, so I guess it doesn't make much sense to give it a high rating when I didn't finish. It was interesting and informative-- a medical textbook. It went on and on using medical terms and history of thousands (it seems!) of doctors and researchers and locations. I learned much from reading the book and I almost finished. I'm interesting in the subject (Epstein-Barr). I got tired of all the medical discussion. As I told an oncology nurse friend, i just want to know this stuff without being bored! I recommend it to others who are interested in medicine and medical history and have a broader understanding (and patience!) of medicine than I.

[Becky L Long · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audiobook. Looooong and dryyyyyy. Took forever to get through. Relatively fascinating if you can handle the delivery method. Um ..... Basically the entire adult human population has this virus whether or not they had active symptoms in their past. With yet one more vaccine (good luck pushing widespread acceptance of more vaccines after covid) and a century of data we could plausibly eradicate the virus ......

If you just want something read by this narrator the books by Nick Spalding are way more entertaining .....

[Albaraa Najjar · Rating 3 out of 5]

It needs better editing

[Eddie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a great book that touches in many key cancer immunology topics. Unfortunately there are portions that are not easily accessible to someone who does not have a biology degree.

[Niall Macdougall · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting virus

Enjoyed this popular science review of.Epstein Barr virus which seems.to have a massive.impact on human health worldwide. Accessible and interesting.

[Haver · Rating 4 out of 5]

The subject of this book is fascinating! I enjoyed learning about the history of the discoveries and how the medical community has developed a greater understanding of how viruses can relate to cancer. I particularly enjoyed the explanation describing how the eight EBV proteins made in malignant cells promote uncontrolled cell growth and how the selection of the proteins present varies by type of cancer. I look forward to reading about further research in this area.

Ideally the book would have been better organized and edited. Similarly, the writing level and style left a lot to be desired and at times took away from the content, making it difficult to keep reading.

Despite the writing, the book is worth a read for anyone with an interest in medicine or biochemistry.

[Chris Chase · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written by 2 scientists so not real exciting but good with great stories about epidemiology and virology.

[Sheikh Rajiuddin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much information, too less anything else!