In his new book, FIRST PATIENTS: The Incredible True Stories of Pioneer Patients, Dr. Rod Tanchanco shows us how far we’ve come; what we’ve learned from past pandemics, and the real-life patient stories behind our most important medical advancements. 

Often marked by the desperate need to save human lives, important developments in medicine have invariably started with patients—people whose ordeals fostered the advancement of medical knowledge. This book is a collection of such stories, each chapter an enthralling view into the history of medicine, revealing the extent of human inventiveness, resilience, and compassion.

Dr. Rod Tanchanco, MD is an internist & a Fellow in the American College of Physicians with three decades of experience. Rod has worked as a primary care physician, hospitalist, research doctor, and medical director for global healthcare organizations. He writes medically-themed non-fiction focused on historical events and their human narratives.