In-Store: Alexandra Sifferlin: The Elusive Body w/ David Wallace-Wells

Event guidelines:

• Each ticket will include either a copy of the featured book or a $10 Books Are Magic gift card.
• Additional copies of the book will be available for purchase at the event.
• A signing will follow the talk.
• Home address is collected for contact tracing purposes; it will not be used otherwise.
• The event will also be livestreamed for free here: https://youtube.com/live/8qGmpL5Y_L8
• As a reminder: If you are not feeling well, please do not come to the event, even if you have a ticket; email us and we'll work it out.

If you have any questions regarding these guidelines or to request accessibility accommodations, please contact [email protected].

A compelling, necessary, and timely investigation into the diagnosis crisis in the American healthcare system, from the patients living with undiagnosed illnesses, to the doctors searching for answers, and what their quests reveal about our flawed medical system.

Millions of Americans live with conditions that elude diagnosis, often navigating a healthcare system that fails to recognize or effectively address their suffering. Journalist Alexandra Sifferlin has spent years investigating the diagnosis crisis in America—what it means to live without an accurate diagnosis and how both medical and patient communities are working to improve the diagnostic process. The National Institutes of Health’s Undiagnosed Diseases Network, a series of clinics of last resort where physicians and researchers work tirelessly to solve some of medicine’s most confounding cases, is at the forefront of change, showing what’s possible when healthcare providers and scientists are freed from the bureaucracy of a system beholden to insurance companies, and encouraged to work together with the aim of solving some of medicine’s most perplexing mysteries.

A correct diagnosis is more than a label; it’s a lifeline that opens doors to treatment options, financial support, and an understanding community. Weaving the profound, maddening, and uplifting stories of patients seeking answers to unexplainable symptoms, the doctors trying to help them, and the latest research on diagnosis, The Elusive Body illuminates the diagnostic journey, revealing why diagnoses matter and how they have the power to transform lives, the medical system, and even society, one case at a time.

Alexandra Sifferlin is an editor leading health and science coverage for The New York Times Opinion desk. She is a former deputy editor of the health publication Elemental, and staff writer at Time, where she covered medicine and public health. Sifferlin lives with her family in Brooklyn, NY.

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