Breakthrough

Elizabeth Hughes, the Discovery of Insulin, and the Making of a Medical Miracle

Thea Cooper and Arthur Ainsberg

St. Martin's Griffin

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It is 1919 and Elizabeth Hughes, the eleven-year-old daughter of America's most-distinguished jurist and politician, Charles Evans Hughes, has been diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. It is essentially a death sentence. The only accepted form of treatment – starvation – whittles her down to forty-five pounds skin and bones. Miles away, Canadian researchers Frederick Banting and Charles Best manage to identify and purify insulin from animal pancreases – a miracle soon marred by scientific jealousy, intense business competition and fistfights. In a race against time and a ravaging disease, Elizabeth becomes one of the first diabetics to receive insulin injections – all while its discoverers and a little known pharmaceutical company struggle to make it available to the rest of the world.

Relive the heartwarming true story of the discovery of insulin as it’s never been told before. Written with authentic detail and suspense, and featuring walk-ons by William Howard Taft, Woodrow Wilson, and Eli Lilly himself, among many others.

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ONE
 
Christ Church Cranbrook, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, 1981
 
On Tuesday, April 28, 1981, Mourners began to Converge on the wet streets around Christ Church Cranbrook in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Emerging from their late model cars, they tucked under umbrellas and made their way through the raw spring air toward the carillon bells ringing from the tower. Inside the sanctuary, organ music soared from the south wall of the nave, drawing the eye upward to the intricately carved wood, stone, and brilliant stained glass.

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Praise for Breakthrough

"The twentieth century witnessed many medical miracles, but perhaps none was so transformative as the discovery of insulin for the treatment for diabetes. Breakthrough is the fascinating tale of Nobel prize-winning research, of a young girl who should have died as a child but instead lived to see seven grandchildren, and of a drug that turned a death sentence into something more akin to a chronic nuisance. This book is an important read for anyone with diabetes. It is an enjoyable read for those who love mystery and human drama."--Kenneth T. Jackson, Barzun Professor of History, Columbia University 

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About the Author

Thea Cooper and Arthur Ainsberg

THEA COOPER is an author, playwright, editor and teacher. ARTHUR AINSBERG is an author and financial industry veteran whose successful battle with Hodgkin's disease sparked his interest in medical history.

Thea Cooper
Arthur Ainsberg

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Available Formats and Book Details

Breakthrough
Elizabeth Hughes, the Discovery of Insulin, and the Making of a Medical Miracle
Thea Cooper and Arthur Ainsberg

Trade Paperback

Trade Paperback
St. Martin's Press
St. Martin's Griffin
October 2011
Trade Paperback
ISBN: 9780312611743
ISBN10: 0312611749
5 1/2 x 8 1/4 inches, 336 pages, Plus one 8-page black-and-white photograph insert
$14.99
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Hardcover

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Hardcover
St. Martin's Press
September 2010
Hardcover
ISBN: 9780312648701
ISBN10: 0312648707
6 1/8 x 9 1/4 inches, 320 pages, Includes 8 pages of black-and-white photographs
$24.99
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e-Book Agency

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e-Book Agency
St. Martin's Press
September 2010
e-Book Agency
ISBN: 9781429965699
ISBN10: 142996569X
320 pages
$9.99
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