Cystic Fibrosis: The Ultimate Teen Guide

The day-to-day dealings of life as a cystic fibrosis patient are described through a series of flashbacks to a time when the author was an 18-year-old volunteer at cystic fibrosis overnight camp. From diagnosis to death, this book leaves no aspect of CF untold as it includes a description of the illness; a comprehensive discussion of who gets the disease and why; an explanation of the procedures involved in diagnosing the disease; coverage of the arduous daily therapies involved in maintaining the life of a person with cystic fibrosis; and, now that people who have CF are living longer because of available therapies, the new challenges of dealing with CF-related diabetes as well as making decisions regarding lung transplants are all covered.

Melanie Ann Apel began writing about CF in 1995 and has since published more than 40 non-fiction books for children and young adults. She worked as a pediatric respiratory therapist at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago for six years.