The Neuroscientist Who Lost Her Mind: My Tale of Madness and Recovery

When Lipska, a renowned brain scientist and triathlete, feared something was seriously wrong when she noticed part of her visual field had disappeared. A high-achieving Polish immigrant with a loving, supportive family, she had survived breast cancer and a previous bout of melanoma. When an MRI revealed brain tumors caused by metastatic melanoma, she was treated with surgery and radiation, then immunotherapy. After two months, though, the tumors multiplied, and her brain swelled dangerously, causing her to experience some of the same symptoms of dementia and schizophrenia as the people whose brains she had studied. She raged at her family, lost her inhibitions, and got lost while walking in her neighborhood. After beginning targeted therapy, she miraculously started to become herself again. In explicit, yet approachable language, Lipska explains what happened to her brain. Unfortunately, Emma Powell's narration, while clear and upbeat, doesn't feel quite authentic.