As a retired brain surgeon, Henry Marsh thought he understood illness, but even he was unprepared for the impact of his diagnosis of advanced cancer. In And Finally, he navigates the bewildering transition from doctor to patient.

As the days pass, his mind turns to his career, to the people and places he has known, and to creative projects still to be completed. Yet he is also more entranced than ever by the mysteries of science and nature, by his love for his family, and - most of all - by what it is to be alive.