My Lifelong Fight Against Disease

From Polio and AIDS to COVID-19

Anticipating a career in medicine, Dr. William A. Haseltine was in his first weeks of graduate studies at Harvard when a legendary physician-scientist offered this advice: “You can do more for human health through science than you ever could as a doctor.” That advice hit him “like a thunderbolt”—and he took it.

Since then, Dr. Haseltine has helped combat cancers, worked to contain the HIV/AIDS pandemic and unlocked the power of the human genome to develop dozens of new pharmaceutical cures. His discoveries in molecular biology and genomics, amplified through his counsel at the highest levels of government and in the public eye, have improved the health and lives of millions of people around the world.

For the first time, Dr. Haseltine tells his life story—which is still unfolding—in My Lifelong Fight Against Disease, including facing devastating public health crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, and highlighting exhilarating moments of medical discovery. In writing the story of his wide ranging career, Dr. Haseltine’s goals are simple: to encourage the next generation to make their own significant contribution to human life, and for all readers to appreciate science as a humanistic enterprise.

A compulsively readable and fast paced insider’s account of some of the most brilliant medical breakthroughs in modern history, My Lifelong Fight Against Disease is a candid, evocative and ultimately revelatory exploration into what it means to make science your life.

$35.00
ISBN: 978-1-64543-826-7
SKU: 08-880-01
Categories:Amplify Publishing, Health, Medicine, and Wellness, Health, Medicine, and Wellness, Industries, Healthcare and Medical, Memoirs and Biographies, Memoirs and Biographies

“Place this book at the top of your list. You will be inspired to make an impact on the world, with a remarkable guide to help show you the path.”—Sanjay Gupta, MD, Associate Professor of Neurosurgery, Emory; Chief Medical Correspondent, CNN

“Readers will be swept along by the excitement of discovery, the urgency of breakthrough treatment, the impact of policy and the thrill of success. I can well imagine future leaders in health science looking back on this book as formative to their own journeys.”—Brian Greene, Director, Columbia Center for Theoretical Physics; Co-founder and Chairman, World Science Festival

“This compelling personal and professional story offers a superbly insightful analysis of what it will take for humanity to keep combatting increasingly complex health challenges and their devastating impacts. A life and career guided by a purpose to improve the health and well being of people everywhere is a legacy that gives hope.”—Michelle Williams, Dean of the Faculty, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

“Enthusiasm in embracing the public context of science is all too rare in the science community. Bill models this in a joyful way, inspiring others to relish science and public engagement. This book is an instant classic!”—Mary Woolley, President and CEO, Research!America

“A timely, moving and inspirational account of the difference that a curious man can make in the world. He combines his powerful personal story with easy-to-read explanations of his tussles with medical science, and thrilling accounts of the political battles he faced.”—Gillian Tett, Chair Editorial Board and Editor-at-Large, The Financial Times

“This gripping autobiography is at once a study in the development of a scientific mind infused with humanist commitment and a candid revelation of a complex and many sided personality. Readers will get to know great scientists, political figures, activists and above all the author himself, whose careers in molecular biology research and biopharmaceutical entrepreneurship have been of immense benefit to humankind.”—Leo J. O'Donovan, S.J., President Emeritus, Georgetown University

William A. Haseltine, PhD

Scientist, Businessman, Author, and Philanthropist

williamhaseltine.com

William A. Haseltine, PhD, is a scientist, businessman, philanthropist, and author. He is an internationally recognized expert on COVID-19 and is often sought after for advice on how to confront pandemics. He was a professor at Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Public Health and is well known for his pioneering work on cancer, HIV/AIDS, and genomics. He has founded more than a dozen biotechnology companies, including Human Genome Sciences, Inc. Eight pharmaceutical products from companies he founded are currently approved by U.S. and international regulatory agencies. He is the author of more than two hundred peer-reviewed manuscripts and ten books, including two books on COVID: A Family Guide to Covid and A Covid Back to School Guide. He is currently chair and president of the global health think tank ACCESS Health International.