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In the Vietnam jungle in 1972, the Viet Cong have a devastating biological weapon they could use if they knew it was there. Their ignorance of its existence matters little, though, so readily does it obliterate the enemy. Most terrifying is its unlikely method of transmission. Antimalarial tablets, products meant to stave off deadly illness, contain a microbe that causes any wound sustained in combat to turn gangrenous and swiftly lethal, even if it has received competent medical treatment and the patient is recovering. Matt Rogowicz, a journalist-turned-lab technician, spots mutant cells under a microscope, but his superiors disregard his fears. Three previously mending soldiers die in torment within hours. Peace eludes Matt at war's end. Fourteen years pass before this dogged journalist and a tireless medical research team discover a single factor contaminating the tablets. Meanwhile, they watch helplessly as the scourge threatens two promising civilian women's lives.
Kappler, a trauma surgeon, writes from his experience treating wounded combatants at the Eighty-Fifth Evacuation Hospital in Vietnam. Post-traumatic stress disorder in soldiers is a frequent topic in texts about the era. However, this book also poignantly details how it affected such noncombatants as medical staff and lab technicians like Rogowicz since they witnessed the mangling aftereffects of mechanized warfare on the human body. The book proceeds to clearly explain not only the wide array of symptoms that accompany PTSD but also individuals' coping strategies. Despite their realism, all characters are of the author's creation. Near the end of the text appears a disclaimer meant to assure readers that potentially harmful pharmaceutical products named in the text do not exist and that expired medications are not kept for future widespread distribution. Still, those who have entertained apprehensions of conspiracies within major pharmaceutical companies may find that this book validates their views.