ENIGMA
The Book
A dual-voice memoir and practical companionDipannita Basu & Martin Perminas
Coming 2027One woman’s extraordinary experience of Grade 4 glioblastoma and catastrophic stroke — this is an extraordinary story of survival, but it is also a practical guide for people facing the unimaginable. A story forged from lived experience on both sides of the hospital bed.
© 2026 Dipannita Basu & Martin Perminas. All rights reserved.
The book
Enigma is two parts in one volume.Part One — The Memoir
Dipannita Basu’s personal story of surviving a catastrophic hemorrhagic stroke followed almost immediately by a diagnosis of Grade 4 glioblastoma multiforme, three major brain surgeries, and a recovery trajectory that defied medical expectations. Interwoven with Martin’s chapters as caregiver, researcher, and partner.Part Two — The Companion
A practical, systems-thinking guide for patients, families, and caregivers drawn directly from their lived experience and research. Clear, usable orientation rather than abstract advice.This is not a conventional illness memoir. It is the story of someone who consciously set out to become a medical outlier — and the practical knowledge that emerged from that determination.
WHO IT'S FOR
• People facing high-grade brain cancer, stroke, or complex neurological injury
• Caregivers seeking clearer orientation in the early and middle stages
• Readers drawn to stories of agency, resilience, and living beyond expected limits
• Anyone who wants both a human story and usable thinking tools
The Companion
Over the years of Dipa’s recovery and living with brain cancer, we developed a set of practical orientation principles and systems approaches that helped us navigate uncertainty, decisions, and daily life.
A selection of that hard-won knowledge appears in the Companion section of Enigma. You can receive a short, self-contained extract by joining the list below. It is adapted from the Companion and offered as a preview.
Drawn from our lived experience as patient and caregiver. This is not medical advice. Every situation is different — please work with your own care team. The full Companion in the book goes substantially further.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Dipannita Basu
Was an Emerita Professor whose life was marked by intellectual curiosity, bold humor, and a refusal to accept imposed limits. In 2012 she suffered a major stroke and, weeks later, was diagnosed with Grade 4 glioblastoma. Against prevailing medical predictions she lived far longer than expected. She co-authored Enigma with the clear intention that her story and hard-won insights would reach others. Dipa passed away in July 2025.Martin Perminas
Is her husband, co-author, and primary caregiver throughout the years of recovery and living with brain cancer. His chapters bring the research orientation, systems thinking, and practical framing that form the Companion.
With Gratitude
Enigma exists because of the care, skill, and steady presence of many people.
We are deeply grateful to the clinicians, nurses, therapists, and support staff who walked with Dipa through the acute years and the long recovery that followed. We also thank the friends, family, and colleagues who offered practical help, research insight, editorial guidance, and quiet companionship along the way.
A fuller list of those who contributed to Dipa’s care and to the making of this book appears in the printed volume.
For Publishers
Enigma is a completed dual-voice memoir and practical companion, currently in final polish, with publication targeted for 2027.
The combination of an extraordinary medical-outlier narrative with a usable systems guide for patients and caregivers positions the book for both general memoir readers and specialty channels in health, caregiving, brain injury, and oncology support.
Platform development is underway through this site, an email list, and related practical content. Full proposal materials, sample chapters, and the manuscript are available on request.
DIPA'S LEGACY
Dipa died in July 2025. What she learned did not end with her.
Enigma keeps her words and the practical Companion the two of you built from years on both sides of the hospital bed. That book is the first part of her legacy.The work then moved into the world. Martin established the Neuro-Recovery Institute, a network of centers, where stroke survivors can benefit from the technology that she helped test and refine.He is also establishing the Dr Dipa Foundation to help people facing glioblastoma and stroke. The foundation is not yet launched. When it can receive funds, that will be said plainly. Until then, the public fact is the book, the Companion, and NRI.
She wrote the story. He continued the mission.
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