Presents an unflinching look inside the detective story that marks nearly every illness-the diagnosis-revealing the combination of uncertainty and intrigue that doctors face when confronting patients who are sick or dying--from the challenges of the physical exam to the pitfalls of doctor-to-doctor communication, the vagaries of tests, and the near calamity of diagnostic errors.

Every patient's nightmare -- Every Patient Tells a Story -- The facts, and what lies beyond -- The stories they tell -- High Touch -- A vanishing art -- What only the exam can show -- Seeing is believing -- The healing touch -- The heart of the matter -- High Tech -- Testing troubles -- Limits of the Medical Mind -- Sick thinking -- Digital diagnosis -- The final diagnosis.