Healthcare has made huge progress in the last 70 years, but how much further could we have travelled if we'd let patients lead the charge? To design any treatment or service without hearing the voices of those who use it, and knowing what matters most to them, is to set ourselves up for failure. And yet patient involvement is a relatively recent idea. When I trained as a doctor in the mid-eighties, we commonly wouldn't tell some patients what their diagnosis was, for fear of upsetting them. Others were labelled 'not for resuscitation' without any discussion or agreement from them. And yet as this book amply illustrates, there are huge gains to be made from telling patients the whole truth and letting them take a lead in their care, and to take as much control and responsibility as they feel willing and able to do. The patient leaders here tell inspiring and sometimes frustrating stories, but they are all united by a desire to learn from their experience and to improve the experience of those who follow them. We desperately need their help if healthcare is to cope with the demands placed on it. This wonderful collection of insight and experience is a great place to start.