Alice Trillin died on September 11 , 2001 , at the New York Presbyterian Hospital from heart failure resulting from radiation damage sustained when she was treated for lung cancer in 1976 . Eight months before her demise , Trillin 's essay " Betting your life " on doctors , illness and family was published in '' The New Yorker '' . Her death was largely overlooked by the media due to its taking place the same day as the September 11th attacks
September 11th attacks
September 11 attacks
Alice Stewart Trillin