The End of My Life Is Killing Me: The Unexpected Joys of a Cancer Slacker

by Annabelle Gurwitch

In this deftly comedic and deeply contemplative memoir, the New York Times bestselling author faces life’s biggest curveball only to find resilience in the most unlikely places.

After Annabelle Gurwitch received an out-of-the blue diagnosis of Stage 4 lung cancer, an existential dread set in. Precision medicine offered a temporary reprieve—but instead of turning into a cancer warrior, Annabelle declared herself a cancer slacker. Her motto: no runs, no ribbons, no religion.

Told with her signature wit, warmth, and gimlet eye, Gurwitch draws inspiration from Greek mythology and TV comedies, Kermit the Frog and Samuel Beckett. She accidentally acquires an angel, embraces being in it “just for the sex,” and finds herself on a European van tour selling merch for a heavy metal band.

In this hilariously and deeply affecting meditation on mortality, the actress and activist illuminates life with chronic disease, inequities in care, and celebrates tiny victories, the crusty ends of baguettes, the discreet pleasure of sucking at a hobby, and the unshakable bond of female friendship. She upends the notion of living each day as if it were your last, as she discovers you can carpe too much diem, embracing, instead, the extraordinariness of the ordinary.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction

240 pages, Paperback

Expected publication March 17, 2026

About the author

ANNABELLE GURWITCH grew up hoping that she was the long lost daughter of Joni Mitchell or the reincarnation of an Egyptian princess. Neither of those things turned out to be true. She is the author of The New York Times bestseller and Thurber Prize Finalist for Humor Writing 2015, I See You Made an Effort; You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up (co-written with husband Jeff Kahn); and Fired! which was also a Showtime Comedy Special.
Annabelle was the original co-host of Dinner & a Movie for 6 seasons on TBS and host of Planet Green's WA$TED. Other acting credits include Seinfeld, Dexter, Boston Legal. Her essays and satire have appeared in The New York Times, The New Yorker, Los Angeles Times, Marie Claire, The Nation, Men's Health, Glamour, Salon.com. She was a regular commentator on NPR for numerous years and regularly performs at arts venues across the country. She is empty nesting in Los Angeles. Annabelle is a Jewish mother, a reluctant atheist, and an avid environmentalist.

Reviews

[Marika · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who would think that a stage 4 cancer diagnosis would make for a humorous meditation on life? Meet author Annabelle Gurwitch, tv host and actress who has just the right amount of acerbic wit to write deftly about her experiences with stage 4 lung cancer with levity. She declares that she will not turn into a cancer warrior but instead declares that she is a cancer slacker. Her motto: no runs, no ribbons, no religion. Instead, she finds that joy is to be found in the ordinary. Readers will smile when they read a passage, then feel a twinge of guilt about smiling about a cancer slacker.


*I read an advance copy and was not compensated

[Cool · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC, in exchange for an unbiased review.

I've not read any of Gurwitch's previous writings, but was intrigued by her memoir's premise of being a "Cancer Slacker." Gurwitch, a writer and actress in her 60s, was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer during the pandemic, and describes the aftereffects of this paradigm-shifting life event.

I don't want to bang on a memoir, particularly not on a memoir of someone's experience with Stage 4 cancer. Buuuut. This was less a "memoir of someone with Stage 4 cancer" and more a "memoir of a boomer in her later years." I just did not connect with the author, or her experiences; I am certain this is because this is not so much a memoir as a collection of essays, not in chronological order of happenings, and only barely tied together with the cancer theme. I am not going to lie, the "I'm With the Band" chapter was excruciating to read, far too long, and had almost nothing to do with the "cancer slacker" theme beyond "I did this after my diagnosis."

I was quite surprised how bored I was by this memoir. I believe that this book will appeal to a certain demographic (cancer patients and survivors, and older boomer women), but beyond those groups, this wasn't the book for me.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The End of My Life Is Killing Me by Annabelle Gurwitch. This book is anything but sad, when a Covid test turned into Stage 4 lung cancer Gurwitch made the best of it. Getting out of her comfort zone and handling the mess that a terminal illness creates in her already hectic life during lockdown. Each essay follows you on a new journey or an ordinary day in her life where decisions are made, new friendships are formed, and old bonds reopened. I found myself not only rooting for her but also relating to the "what have I gotten myself into" narrative of love, life and finding your place in a new norm that you didn't sign up for. With seamless witty banter, and also remembering what brought her here this book gave me pause to remember we only get one life, so don't let anything stop you from living it with greatness. Put this one on your radar to pick up in March 2026, or preorder yourself a copy!

Thank you to Zibby Publishing for this advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Celia Morse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Faced with a terminal cancer diagnosis, Annabelle Gurwitch decides to embrace it as an opportunity to just "say yes" and accept new opportunities as they are presented, however unlikely they may seem. Eat the bread, adopt the cats, try ketamine therapy, take a chance on a trip to Europe to hawk "merch" for a heavy metal band whose members are young enough to be her children. Symptom free and fortunate enough to have a form of lung cancer responsive to a targeted therapy, Annabelle's one pill a day treatment regimen allows her to embrace the opportunities as they come along and she takes the reader along on her often hilarious experiences as a "cancer slacker."

[Eileen Acosta · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did not know who Annabelle Gurwitch is when I started this memoir. But it doesn't matter. She is a woman who is diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer after being advised to get a scan after a negative COVID test. The cancer she has is able to be treated with a single pill - but the pill will eventually stop working. This begins her "after" life. There are funny moments, adventures, tears, and much information (sometimes forcing me to skim, it was so much). She refers to Greek mythology quite a bit, which may inspire me to take a class! Thanks to NetGalley for this digital ARC.

[Susan Keller · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read an advanced reader copy and laughed out loud, a funny book about a cancer diagnosis. I am sending one to my daughter who is also fighting cancer as soon as the book is published!

[Janene Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I found the author's journey, from how she was diagnosed to the mindset she would need to have in order to endure the battle, grueling. . .I was compelled to keep reading. It was equal parts sad and funny, hopeful and infuriating, inspiring and thought provoking. I enjoy the memoir because it gives me a first hand glimpse into someone else's story. Although the subject matter for Annabelle's personal account is dark, not something anyone wishes for, it is filled with tiny victories and the essays depict her journey from diagnosis to treatment to growth as a human being. I received an advanced copy of this book to review.