This is the first installment of a five-part series. Also see Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, and Part 5.







* Correction: The text about the effects of cystic fibrosis has been changed to reflect the improved prognoses for babies born with CF, based on modern treatments. (The doctor originally predicted a likely lung transplant by age 5 instead of a possible lung transplant in childhood.) While the original text came from the author’s personal memory of the conversation, we made the changes so that the comic gives a more current and accurate snapshot about an important medical question.







Lauren R. Weinstein is a cartoonist, cartooning teacher, and avid gardener who lives in scenic Maplewood, New Jersey. She is currently working on a teenage memoir entitled How to Draw a Nose.