Michael Palmer (novelist)
Encyclopedia
Michael Stephen Palmer, M.D.
(born October 9, 1942, Springfield, Massachusetts
, United States
), is the author of 16 novels, often called medical thriller
s. His novels have made the New York Times bestseller list and have been translated into 35 languages.
with a pre-med major, and with "sort of a Russian minor." He then went to Case Western Reserve University
for medical school
. Palmer trained in internal medicine
at Boston City and Massachusetts General Hospitals, spent 20 years as a full-time practitioner of internal and emergency medicine, and is now an associate director of the Massachusetts Medical Society
's physician health program.
. Palmer thought if Cook, also a Wesleyan graduate, could write a novel, then he could too.
Before he began work on his first published novel, The Sisterhood, about euthanasia
, Palmer was practicing treatment of drug addiction. His first book was rejected, but The Sisterhood, in which nurses aiming to end human suffering by killing the patient, made the New York Times bestseller list - something repeated by all his subsequent novels to this day.
Side Effects, his second published work, was about the testing of unapproved drugs on a patient in Nazi Germany
, but his most famous novel proved to be 1991's Extreme Measures, in which a promising young doctor is threatened by a hospital elite after discovering the body's criminal acts. Natural Causes (1994) is about a holistic doctor who prescribes medicine that actually kills patients, whilst Miracle Cure is about a drug for heart disease
that actually is very dangerous because of its side effects.
The 1996 thriller film Extreme Measures
, starring Hugh Grant
, Gene Hackman
and Sarah Jessica Parker
, is based on Palmer's book of the same name.
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
(born October 9, 1942, Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
), is the author of 16 novels, often called medical thriller
Medical thriller
A medical thriller is a type of thriller with major elements regarding medicine, medical practice or surgery. Examples of such works are The Third Pandemic by Pierre Ouellette, Safari by Ahmed Khaled Towfik, works by Robin Cook, and the 2011 film Contagion....
s. His novels have made the New York Times bestseller list and have been translated into 35 languages.
Education
He graduated from Wesleyan UniversityWesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
with a pre-med major, and with "sort of a Russian minor." He then went to Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University is a private research university located in Cleveland, Ohio, USA...
for medical school
Medical school
A medical school is a tertiary educational institution—or part of such an institution—that teaches medicine. Degree programs offered at medical schools often include Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Bachelor/Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Philosophy, master's degree, or other post-secondary...
. Palmer trained in internal medicine
Internal medicine
Internal medicine is the medical specialty dealing with the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of adult diseases. Physicians specializing in internal medicine are called internists. They are especially skilled in the management of patients who have undifferentiated or multi-system disease processes...
at Boston City and Massachusetts General Hospitals, spent 20 years as a full-time practitioner of internal and emergency medicine, and is now an associate director of the Massachusetts Medical Society
Massachusetts Medical Society
The Massachusetts Medical Society is the oldest continuously-operating state medical society in the United States. Incorporated on November 1, 1781, by an act of the Massachusetts General Court, the MMS is a non-profit organization that consists of approximately 22,000 physicians, medical students...
's physician health program.
Writing
Palmer claims he never wanted to be a writer. He didn't think he had much "flair" for it, even though he read in his spare time. In 1978 he read Dr. Robin Cook's medical thriller ComaComa (novel)
Coma is Robin Cook's first published novel, written in 1977. The book was a New York Times best seller and was also voted as the number one thriller of the year by the New York Times....
. Palmer thought if Cook, also a Wesleyan graduate, could write a novel, then he could too.
Before he began work on his first published novel, The Sisterhood, about euthanasia
Euthanasia
Euthanasia refers to the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering....
, Palmer was practicing treatment of drug addiction. His first book was rejected, but The Sisterhood, in which nurses aiming to end human suffering by killing the patient, made the New York Times bestseller list - something repeated by all his subsequent novels to this day.
Side Effects, his second published work, was about the testing of unapproved drugs on a patient in Nazi Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, but his most famous novel proved to be 1991's Extreme Measures, in which a promising young doctor is threatened by a hospital elite after discovering the body's criminal acts. Natural Causes (1994) is about a holistic doctor who prescribes medicine that actually kills patients, whilst Miracle Cure is about a drug for heart disease
Heart disease
Heart disease, cardiac disease or cardiopathy is an umbrella term for a variety of diseases affecting the heart. , it is the leading cause of death in the United States, England, Canada and Wales, accounting for 25.4% of the total deaths in the United States.-Types:-Coronary heart disease:Coronary...
that actually is very dangerous because of its side effects.
The 1996 thriller film Extreme Measures
Extreme Measures
Extreme Measures is a 1996 thriller film based on Michael Palmer's 1991 novel of the same name, about the ethics of how far we are willing to go, and how much we are willing to sacrifice, in order to cure the world's ills.-Cast:...
, starring Hugh Grant
Hugh Grant
Hugh John Mungo Grant is an English actor and film producer. He has received a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA, and an Honorary César. His films have earned more than $2.4 billion from 25 theatrical releases worldwide. Grant achieved international stardom after appearing in Richard Curtis's...
, Gene Hackman
Gene Hackman
Eugene Allen "Gene" Hackman is an American actor and novelist.Nominated for five Academy Awards, winning two, Hackman has also won three Golden Globes and two BAFTAs in a career that spanned five decades. He first came to fame in 1967 with his performance as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde...
and Sarah Jessica Parker
Sarah Jessica Parker
Sarah Jessica Parker is an American film, television, and theater actress and producer.She is best known for her leading role as Carrie Bradshaw on the HBO television series Sex and the City , for which she won four Golden Globe Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and two Emmy Awards...
, is based on Palmer's book of the same name.
Novels
- The Sisterhood (book) (1982), ISBN 0-553-27570-4
- Side Effects (1985), ISBN 0-553-27618-2
- Flashback (book) (1988), ISBN 0-553-27329-9
- Extreme Measures (book) (1991), ISBN 0-553-29577-2
- Natural Causes (book) (1994), ISBN 0-553-56876-0
- Silent Treatment (book) (1995), ISBN 0-553-57221-0
- Critical Judgment (book) (1996), ISBN 0-553-57408-6
- Miracle Cure (book) (1998), ISBN 0-553-57662-3
- The Patient (book) (2000), ISBN 0-553-58038-8
- Fatal (book) (2002), ISBN 0-553-58361-1
- The Society (book) (2004), ISBN 0-553-58362-X
- The Fifth Vial (book) (2007), ISBN 0-553-58362-X
- The First Patient (book) (2008), ISBN 0-312-34353-1
- The Second Opinion (book) (2009), ISBN 9780312343552
- The Last Surgeon (book) (2010), ISBN 9780312587499
- A Heartbeat Away (book) (2011), ISBN 9780312587529
- Oath of Office (book) (2012), ISBN 9780312587536