New Novel slated for publication in March 2017

las defensas 3.inddThe Foundation is pleased to share with you the news that a novel, based on the true story of our partner physician, Dr. Domingo Escudero, will be published in Catalan, Spanish and French on March 14, 2017 by the publishing house, Seix-Barral.  The novel, The Defenses by Gabi Martinez follows Camilo Escobedo, a 50-year-old prominent neurologist from Barcelona who in 2006 was wrongly diagnosed by his colleagues as bipolar, when in fact he suffered from a rare autoimmune disease which he eventually diagnosed himself. As the disease progresses, he insults and attacks the people he loves the most, as well as those who had been his colleagues and who now were facing the challenge of treating him as a patient; not as a doctor. The lack of professional recognition, the divorce from the mother of his three daughters, his lovers and the harassment from his boss led him, literally, to madness. Before falling ill again, he diagnosed himself with a theory that was later confirmed with test results from a laboratory in the US: he suffered from a recently-discovered illness (limbic encephalitis). Escobedo’s case is one among three billion. In the form of a novel, The Defenses is a first person neuropolitical narrative that pieces together the story of Escobedo’s life, a discovery that allows him to realize that his brain harbours antibodies (NMDAR) that are sabotaging his mental health.

We look forward to the publication of the novel and its translation into English soon.

Please click here for the French translations.