When Illness Goes Public: Celebrity Patients and

SteveMcQueenhadcancerandwaskeepingitsecret.Thenthemediafoundout，andsoonallofAmericaknew.McQueen’shighprofilechangedforeverthewaythepublicperceivedadreadeddisease.InWhenIllnessGoesPublic，BarronH.Lernerdescribestheevolutionofcelebrities'illnessesfromprivatematterstostoriesofgreatpublicinterest.FamouspeoplewhohavebecomesymbolsofillnessincludeLouGehrig，thefirst"celebritypatient";RitaHayworth，whoseAlzheimerdiseasewentundiagnosedforyears;andArthurAshe，whocourageouslywentpublicwithhisAIDSdiagnosisbeforethemediacouldrevealhissecret.AndthenthereareprivatecitizenslikeBarneyClark，thefirstrecipientofapermanentartificialheart，andLorenzoOdone，whoseneurologicaldisorderbecamethesubjectofaHollywoodfilm.Whilecelebrityillnesseshavehelpedtoinformpatientsabouttreatmentoptions，ethicalcontroversies，andscientificproof，thestoriessurroundingtheseillnesseshavealsoassumedmythicalcharacteristicsthatmaybemisleading.Marryinggreatstorytellingtoanexplorationoftheintersectionofscience，journalism，fame，andlegend，thisbookisagroundbreakingcontributiontoourunderstandingofhealthandillness.