If asked to supply a subtitle for this excellent eminently readable book, I would suggest “All you ever wanted to know about the basics of colorectal cancer but were afraid to ask because you assumed that people would expect you to know already”. The chapters are written by experts renowned in their field and each topic is dealt with comprehensively and clearly with the reader being led from one line of argument to the next in a satisfyingly logical way. Although aimed at the clinician rather than the scientist, where necessary the scientific evidence is given in sufficient detail without …