Orbis Featured in Mary Roach’s New Book, Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy

We’ve got exciting news to share! Orbis is featured in the brand-new book from New York Times-bestselling author Mary Roach, Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy. This witty, curiosity-fueled exploration of the human body dedicates an entire chapter—“The Mongolian Eyeball”—to our sight-saving work in Mongolia and around the world.

If you know Mary Roach, you know she has a knack for blending science, humour, and humanity into her page-turning books. And in Chapter 11 of her latest one, she takes readers along on her journey through the Mongolian countryside with Orbis, where she witnessed cataract surgeries in one of the most remote corners of the world.

Cataracts — the clouding of the eye’s natural lens — are the leading cause of blindness worldwide. Fortunately, they can be treated with a simple surgery, where a cloudy lens is replaced with a clear artificial one, fitting perfectly with Replaceable You’s theme of how medicine can restore or even replace parts of the human body. But as Mary shows, restoring sight is about so much more than a medical procedure; it’s about transforming lives, families, and entire communities.

Throughout the chapter, Mary captures the heart of our mission: preventing avoidable blindness and restoring sight in places where access to care is limited. She paints vivid pictures of the people behind this work — patients regaining their vision, doctors learning life-changing skills, and the dedicated staff making it all possible. Along the way, she sprinkles in quirky facts (like “Rhinos are myopic”), compares cataract surgery to a live birth, and even shares snippets of her encounters with rural Mongolian life.

“To spend a week with the people from Orbis International was such a treat and a privilege—their commitment and enthusiasm are so obvious, and they so believe in what they do,” said Mary. “What most people don’t realize is that Orbis isn’t about a brief visit to do surgeries; it’s about teaching. They train surgeons so that they can treat the whole community. In that ‘teach a man to fish’ sense, it’s so much more impactful to give someone skills. Think of all the people who will now be able see.”

Dr. Hunter Cherwek, Orbis Vice President of Clinical Services and Technology, accompanied Mary during her travels in Mongolia and is featured in the book. “Mary Roach has an extraordinary gift for making science both entertaining and accessible, and we’re thrilled that she chose to highlight cataract surgery and Orbis’s work in her latest book,” he said. “Her writing shines a light on the urgent need for eye care around the world while capturing the compassion and commitment of the people working toward that cause.”

With her signature wit and curiosity, Mary Roach brings Orbis’s mission to a whole new audience in Replaceable You. We couldn’t be more honored to be part of her journey, and to keep working every day to ensure that no one, anywhere, loses their sight to easily treatable conditions.

Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy by Mary Roach is available now at all major booksellers. Check out her book tour schedule here.