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Respiratory physiology
Book Reviews
102
chapter on surgical management. This is practical, readable and provides a more reasoned and concise discussion of all the issues involved than is available in any other book. The chapter on radiotherapy suffers by comparison as it is dense and quotes the literature widely without reaching any very firm conclusions. This is in part inevitable since the radiotherapy literature is strong on papers describing individual experience but somewhat weak on controlled trials. The chemotherapy of small- and non-small-cell carcinoma are dealt with separately. These chapters provide good reviews of all the important literature; criticism and enthusiasm are well balanced and no extravagant claims are made. There is a final chapter on paraneoplastic syndromes in lung cancer which is probably the weakest with little new information and management is discussed so briefly as to be hardly useful. There are some notable omissions which are not very important within the quite limited brief of the book. For example epidemiology and industrial causes of lung cancer, imaging techniques such as ultrasound, CT scanning of the abdomen, and laser treatment are not discussed at all. While these are not all important in today’s management their absence may make the book look out of date quite quickly. The fundamental question is whether this book is necessary at all and I started reading it with the prejudice that there was no place for a new volume since apart from the advent of chemotherapy which has been well reviewed frequently of late there has been little real progress in this important subject. However, by the end I had become convinced that there is such a need. There is no other book which puts together in such a lucid and concise way all the important management aspects of lung cancer and it can be strongly recommended both for reading and reference. Duncan
Respiratory
Geddes
Physiology
John Widdicombe and Andrew Davies London: Edward Arnold. 1983. 1st edition. ix+ 118. Price E4.95
Pp
This book by John Widdicombe and Andrew Davies provides a very comprehensive intro-
duction to the physiology of respiration. It is designed for medical students preparing for the second MB and I think both in terms of detail and content it provides all that is needed for complete understanding of respiratory physiology. Each chapter finishes with learning objectives and suggested further reading which are provided to encourage the reader not only to test his knowledge gained from each chapter, but also to look further, in detail, into principles outlined. I particularly liked the chapter on structure and can make a general comment that the illustrations are particularly lucid. My only comment in terms of questioning the place of this book is really its cost and the need to purchase all the various physiological books in order to have a complete range of physiology. However I am sure that this would make a very suitable addition to the students’ library. It must be also said that the book should probably not be confined to second MB students, it would make very reasonable reading for the postgraduate doctor who is interested in getting basic information about how the lung works. Tim Higenbottam
Asthma
Eds T. J. H. Clarke and S. Godfrey London: Chapman and Hall Medical. 1983. 2nd edition. Pp. xviiif519. Price E25.00 This is a welcome and significantly improved second edition of Clarke and Godfrey’s justiliably popular compendium on Asthma. The format of the chapters is identical to that of the first edition with one additional chapter, on the use of theophylline. Some changes in chapter authorship have been made and these have freshened the approach to certain topics such as sputum studies and allergy. The size of the book has been increased by 25% and, perhaps the most important addition, each chapter is now extensively referenced. It is a reflection of the many areas of intense activity in asthma research that this second edition can follow the first by only 6 years and yet offer much that is entirely new. Areas in which this is evident are in the chanter on
102
chapter on surgical management. This is practical, readable and provides a more reasoned and concise discussion of all the issues involved than is available in any other book. The chapter on radiotherapy suffers by comparison as it is dense and quotes the literature widely without reaching any very firm conclusions. This is in part inevitable since the radiotherapy literature is strong on papers describing individual experience but somewhat weak on controlled trials. The chemotherapy of small- and non-small-cell carcinoma are dealt with separately. These chapters provide good reviews of all the important literature; criticism and enthusiasm are well balanced and no extravagant claims are made. There is a final chapter on paraneoplastic syndromes in lung cancer which is probably the weakest with little new information and management is discussed so briefly as to be hardly useful. There are some notable omissions which are not very important within the quite limited brief of the book. For example epidemiology and industrial causes of lung cancer, imaging techniques such as ultrasound, CT scanning of the abdomen, and laser treatment are not discussed at all. While these are not all important in today’s management their absence may make the book look out of date quite quickly. The fundamental question is whether this book is necessary at all and I started reading it with the prejudice that there was no place for a new volume since apart from the advent of chemotherapy which has been well reviewed frequently of late there has been little real progress in this important subject. However, by the end I had become convinced that there is such a need. There is no other book which puts together in such a lucid and concise way all the important management aspects of lung cancer and it can be strongly recommended both for reading and reference. Duncan
Respiratory
Geddes
Physiology
John Widdicombe and Andrew Davies London: Edward Arnold. 1983. 1st edition. ix+ 118. Price E4.95
Pp
This book by John Widdicombe and Andrew Davies provides a very comprehensive intro-
duction to the physiology of respiration. It is designed for medical students preparing for the second MB and I think both in terms of detail and content it provides all that is needed for complete understanding of respiratory physiology. Each chapter finishes with learning objectives and suggested further reading which are provided to encourage the reader not only to test his knowledge gained from each chapter, but also to look further, in detail, into principles outlined. I particularly liked the chapter on structure and can make a general comment that the illustrations are particularly lucid. My only comment in terms of questioning the place of this book is really its cost and the need to purchase all the various physiological books in order to have a complete range of physiology. However I am sure that this would make a very suitable addition to the students’ library. It must be also said that the book should probably not be confined to second MB students, it would make very reasonable reading for the postgraduate doctor who is interested in getting basic information about how the lung works. Tim Higenbottam
Asthma
Eds T. J. H. Clarke and S. Godfrey London: Chapman and Hall Medical. 1983. 2nd edition. Pp. xviiif519. Price E25.00 This is a welcome and significantly improved second edition of Clarke and Godfrey’s justiliably popular compendium on Asthma. The format of the chapters is identical to that of the first edition with one additional chapter, on the use of theophylline. Some changes in chapter authorship have been made and these have freshened the approach to certain topics such as sputum studies and allergy. The size of the book has been increased by 25% and, perhaps the most important addition, each chapter is now extensively referenced. It is a reflection of the many areas of intense activity in asthma research that this second edition can follow the first by only 6 years and yet offer much that is entirely new. Areas in which this is evident are in the chanter on