Racing to the beginning of the road

Racing to the Beginning of the Road is the fascinating story of an elite inner circle of scientists and their frenetic race to unlock the mystery of cancer's origin. Robert Weinberg chronicles the recent revolution in our understanding of how cancer begins and how it might be conquered in the future. Head of the oncology lab at MIT's renowned Whitehead Institute, he is one of the world's leading experts in cancer research. From his unique perspective at the center of the maelstrom, Dr. Weinberg provides an insightful look at the human forces that propel the race forward or, just as often, hold it back. Some scientists, sensing the urgency and elusiveness of their goal and competition on all sides, leap into brilliantly productive collaborations; others, driven by the same high stakes, construct elaborate deceptions. Like Watson's and Crick's account of discovery in The Double Helix, Racing to the Beginning of the Road reveals the immediate impact of scientific progress: successful proofs of one hypothesis explode others previously held as fact and lead to even more challenging conundrums.