New Medical Thriller Explores the Intersection of Disease, Romance, and International Intrigue

Mystery novel penned by physician experienced in exposure to environmental hazards

BOSTON , MA, UNITED STATES, August 27, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The investigation of a rare blood disease by a young doctor leads to the development of an unexpected romance and becoming embroiled in an international terrorist plot involving Brexit in the new novel “Cluster.” A ‘cluster’ of disease refers to an apparent excess of disease in a confined geographical area.

Harvard trained physician, Robert J. McCunney draws from his decades-long experience as an occupational and environmental medicine physician, to create the centerpiece of the book: a rare and potentially fatal disease that seems to be “clustered” around a specific locale. As the main characters, Dr. Dan Murphy and Anna Carlson, a journalist pursuing a public health degree, navigate government agencies and fall in love, they encounter a former British Intelligence agent bent on revenge by interfering with diplomatic negotiations of Northern Ireland in the Brexit agreement.

“Often in my medical career, I encounter patients frustrated their disease was of an unknown cause,” said McCunney. “I integrated the investigation of the blood diseases with romance and international terrorism involving Northern Ireland, which incorporates my long interest in Irish history and contemporary politics with my experience in medicine.”

As a practicing physician for over 40 years in occupational environmental medicine, Dr. McCunney has been asked to determine potential occupational or environmental causes of disease and also to evaluate whether exposure to a hazard has adversely affected human health. Over his career, he has evaluated “clusters” of diseases and has lectured on the topic around the world.

“I would like readers to gain a perspective on how environmental hazards can adversely affect health and how such causes may be examined,” said McCunney, “including a glimpse into the process of investigating clusters.”

About the author:
Dr. Robert J. McCunney is a specialist in internal, occupational and environmental medicine. As a practicing physician in the Pulmonary Division of the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Mass., he is also a member of the Harvard Medical School faculty, and a visiting research professor at the Harvard School of Public Health. He is a former director of Environmental Medicine at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dr. McCunney received a BS in chemical engineering from Drexel University, an MS in environmental health from the University of Minnesota, an MD from the Thomas Jefferson University Medical School, and an MPH from the Harvard School of Public Health. He trained in internal medicine at Northwestern University Medical Center in Chicago. He has served as editor-in-chief of five medical textbooks and authored or coauthored more than 125 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. While medicine is his life’s passion, he enjoys outdoor activities and is a proud father of his son, Rob, and daughter, Kelsey.

“Cluster” is available for purchase on Amazon and other online retailers. For more information, please visit www.robertjmccunney.com.

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