Life in the Balance

At the age of 49, Dr. Thomas Graboys had reached the pinnacle of his career and was leading a charmed life. A nationally renowned Boston cardiologist popular for his attention to the hearts "and" souls of his patients, Graboys was part of "The Cardiology Dream Team" summoned to treat Boston Celtics star Reggie Lewis after he collapsed on the court in 1993. He had a beautiful wife, two wonderful daughters, positions on both the faculty of Harvard Medical School and the staff of Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital, and a thriving private practice. Today, Grayboys is battling a particularly aggressive form of Parkinson's disease and progressive dementia, and can no longer see patients or give rounds. He is stooped, and shuffles when he walks, the gait of a man much older than his 63 years. And, although he is now remarried to a lovely woman, he lost the mother of his children to cancer in 1998. Despite the physical, mental and emotional toll he battles daily, Graboys continues his life-long mission of caring for the world one human being at a time by telling his story so that others may find comfort, inspiration, or validation in their own struggles. His is not a sugar-coated story with a silver lining; brutally honest and direct, this is an unflinching memoir of a devastating illness as only a consummate physician could write it. One can't help but imagine what Dr. Graboys, the healer, would say to Tom Graboys, the Parkinson's patient--a face-to-face scene imagined in this inspiring book. In his joint roles, Thomas Graboys finds a way to convey hope, optimism and an appreciation of what it means to be truly alive.Graboys, Thomas B. is the author of 'Life in the Balance', published 2008 under ISBN 9781402753411 and ISBN 1402753411.