If you don’t want to take my word that “The Song of the Cell: An Exploration of Medicine and the New Human” by Siddhartha Mukherjee is a must-read, then maybe the fact it won the 2023 PROSE Award for Excellence in Biological and Life Sciences and the 2023 Chautauqua Prize is enough!
The book delves into the intricate world of cellular biology and highlights the interplay between our cells and the emerging paradigms of modern medicine. Mukherjee is a cancer physician and researcher who gives vivid and detailed insight into medical history. The story starts in the late 1600s when groundbreaking discoveries were made that changed the trajectory and understanding of science forever. It was learned that complex living organisms are groups of tiny, self-contained, self-regulating units, and everything that we are as humans (organs, body, etc) is comprised of these compartments called “cells.”
I enjoy how the book unravels the mysteries of cellular functions and how these microscopic entities hold the keys to understanding human health and disease. If you are as obsessed with science as I am, you will also appreciate how Mukherjee emphasizes the potential of cellular therapies, genomics, and personalized medicine – many of which are points of interest for our team at PQE Group and for other Life Sciences leaders.
Human biology is something that we are still working to understand, with so many more elements left to uncover. I strongly recommend this book for anyone wanting to take a glimpse into the past and future to gain a better understanding of where medical endeavors have been and where they are going. Mukherjee connects science, medicine, and deep questions about our existence that encourage us to think about where we fit in the big picture of life and how our cells play a crucial role in keeping us alive and functioning.
