The Perfect Predator

A Scientist's Race to Save Her Husband from a Deadly Superbug: A Memoir

By: Steffanie Strathdee, Thomas Patterson, Teresa Barker - contributor

Narrated by: Christine Lakin, Dan Woren

An electrifying memoir of one woman's extraordinary effort to save her husband's life - and the discovery of a forgotten cure that has the potential to save millions more.

"A memoir that reads like a thriller." (New York Times Book Review)

"A fascinating and terrifying peek into the devastating outcomes of antibiotic misuse - and what happens when standard health care falls short." (Scientific American)

Epidemiologist Steffanie Strathdee and her husband, psychologist Tom Patterson, were vacationing in Egypt when Tom came down with a stomach bug. What at first seemed like a case of food poisoning quickly turned critical, and by the time Tom had been transferred via emergency medevac to the world-class medical center at UC San Diego, where both he and Steffanie worked, blood work revealed why modern medicine was failing: Tom was fighting one of the most dangerous, antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the world.

Frantic, Steffanie combed through research old and new and came across phage therapy: the idea that the right virus, a.k.a. "the perfect predator", can kill even the most lethal bacteria. Phage treatment had fallen out of favor almost 100 years ago, after antibiotic use went mainstream. Now, with time running out, Steffanie appealed to phage researchers all over the world for help. She found allies at the FDA, researchers from Texas A&M, and a clandestine Navy biomedical center - and together they resurrected a forgotten cure.

A nail-biting medical mystery, The Perfect Predator is a story of love and survival against all odds, and the (re)discovery of a powerful new weapon in the global superbug crisis.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2019 Steffanie Strathdee, Thomas Paterson, and Teresa Barker (P)2019 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

Amazon, "Best Books of 2019 (Science)"
Goodreads Choice Awards, Semifinalist (Science & Technology)

STAT News, "Best Health and Science Books to Read This Summer"
Audie Awards, "Nonfiction" Finalist (2020)

"A fascinating and terrifying peek into the devastating outcomes of antibiotic misuse—and what happens when standard health care falls short."—Scientific American

"[A] gripping and intriguing medical thriller...This page-turner of a couple's determination to survive also serves as a dire warning regarding the consequences of the overuse of antibiotics."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"A thriller, a detective story, and at its core a profound romance, The Perfect Predator is [a] breathtaking story.... It's a warning of the havoc that awaits us as antibiotics lose their power, and a glimpse of the science that could hold that dark future at bay—if we can summon the funding and the political will to create it."—Maryn McKenna, Senior Fellow of the Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism at Brandeis University and author of Big Chicken and Superbug

Highly Recommended

I highly recommend this book. I didn't want it to end. Excellent! The narrator's were excellent too

Compelling and excellent read!

Absolutely loved this real-life journey, told through the eyes and heart of scientists but in a way that is accessible to every person. Really high recommended listening. Perfect Predator reveals a reality that is relevant to us all and worth understanding. The writing has captured a traumatic experience with such lovely detail and sensitivity.

Absolutely Fantastic!

I have a very long commute to work and I love learning while I drive. Found this gem in my audibles list and was astonished how beautifully this story develops. I love microbiology and I learned so much about phage therapy while listening to this wonderfully told story of a wife’s struggle to save her husband from a horrific infection that was was resistant to all available antimicrobials. It was riveting and important and so very relevant to our scientific and therapeutic pursuits. I literally drove slower during my commute because I wanted to hear more…. Just amazing! From a researcher at the lab bench and now as an infection preventionist I highly recommend this book. Thank you Dr. Strathdee & Dr Patterson for sharing your story!

Fascinating!

I was fascinated by this true story. I look forward to hearing more about this subject.

Shocking story

A shocking, interesting and amazing story. Heartbreaking to know, how many people who do not have medical knowledge or the wherewithal to fight when they so desperately want themselves or their family members to live, loose their battle.

Yikes!!

This is a perfect book for those who love medical mysteries. This one is full of questions with no answers and try this and that to get to the problem. Turned me into a bit of a hypocondriac as some of these symptoms could be familiar. That went away when I was finished with the book but it certainly did make me turn inward for a minute.

Talk about perseverance!

Educational and Emotional

Took me back to.college biology and microblology and my own scientific research The authors brought that interest and.coupled it with humanity too often forgotten when conducting experiments to find cures for diseases we are disconnect from. To listen to how long it takes to find the correct mixture them get it approved then wait more and more while your loved one may die then survive a successful experiment and look back on a way I never have. The impact we in the labs have on an actual person with loved ones and feelings even when comatose so impactful.
For anyone wanting to better understand the science of bacteria and viruses and their battle for survival while we humans use them or try to lil them, this is the book for you. It is the stoty of all living creatures and the will to survive that made this book less a scientific text and more about the fight to live at all levels of life. Wonderfully done! Good for you Tom and bless you Stephanie for fighting your own battles and going on to use your hardship to continue to search for more clues, more uses to help the survival of the human race.

Fascinating and scientific

Great writing and narration on unfortunately a non - fiction thriller. Hopefully it will open opportunities for new treatment of super bugs.

Heartstrings will be pulled!

I thoroughly enjoyed the narration! The narrator did a wonderful job translating the emotions that Steffanie & Thomas Patterson wrote in the memoir. Furthermore, It gives me great joy to be a Med Tech and a Texas A&M alumnus !

Great read about grit, love and true story about a deadly bug.

What I liked was the actual account of an incredible story of a husband and wife (both scientists) who beat the odds by investigating a cure for the husband who contracted one of the superbugs complex’s behaviors coupled with other ailments.
She discovered that a hundred years old virus could actually kill the superbug. How she did it is remarkable.