Chapter 19: This is a bit difficult, III

At that moment, Professor Taejin Jo of Hematology-Oncology was attending a dinner with junior faculty members and assistant professors from Internal Medicine.

They were considered baby professors now, but as future leaders of the hospital, administration supported these gatherings. Thanks to this, all the professors could drink without worrying about footing the bill. Of course, most still exercised restraint due to their duties the next day.

“So…how’s your resident prodigy doing?” Suh Hyo-sub, an endocrinologist who had no intention whatsoever of moderating his alcohol intake, addressed Taejin Jo. The unfiltered smell of alcohol emanated every time he opened his mouth, making it quite unpleasant for others around him.

Taejin Jo outranked Suh Hyo-sub as an associate professor due to his numerous publications, but regardless of their titles, Hyo-sub had seniority over Taejin. After all, Professor Seo was one year ahead of Professor Jo academically, so Taejin responded with utmost respect.

“It’s my first time here today, so I’m not familiar with him yet.”

“Oh really? Well, Department Head Shin hasn’t stopped talking about him lately. It’s been quite an earful!”

“Didn’t you see Dr. Baek present at the conference? He definitely has something worth boasting about.”

“Hey, don’t you remember how that bastard An Guk-tae tore me apart during my presentation when I was still a fellow? Ever since then, I’ve avoided attending any unless it’s mine.” Suh Hyo-sub spoke firmly.

“Oh…” Taejin nodded, recalling the incident.

Taejin Jo nodded as he reminisced about that time.

Even without Professor An’s intervention, it would’ve been a disaster.

It was truly rare to witness such a mess of a presentation. At the time, Taejin Jo couldn’t fathom Suh Hyo-sub becoming a professor.

Little did he know, Suh Hyo-sub turned out to be the son of Taehwa Life Science’s executive director. Despite the resentment over this blatant nepotism, Taehwa Life Science held absolute sway as they were the ones footing the bill.

Brrrriiing!

As if trying to shake off those unpleasant memories, Taejin Jo was clearing his mind when the phone on the table rang.

“15…03?” Without asking for permission, Suh Hyo-sub picked up Taejin Jo’s cell phone.

It was the third phone number of the west wing on the fifteenth floor.

In other words, it meant a call from the hospital and one that had to be answered.

“Your call.” Professor Seo appeared annoyed as he confirmed the caller ID before handing Taejin his phone almost forcefully. Despite being quite drunk, Taejin managed to catch it.

“How strange? Most patients should be fine now?” He briefly looked puzzled.

If this were regarding an emergency patient, the chief’s direct line would have been called instead of the hospital room phone. Then suddenly, he remembered instructing Lee Suhyuk to notify him directly today.

‘Ah, is it my on-call day?’

As soon as he realized this, he felt somewhat amused. As someone who usually received criticism from the chief for his lack of expertise, Taejin thought that answering a call from a first-year resident could be considered a small feat.

“It’s Taejin Jo from Hemato-Oncology.” He answered the phone with a slightly more relaxed demeanor.

For Suh Hyo-sub, who disliked being bothered by any phone calls, this reaction was quite puzzling.

‘Has he gone mad?’

While observing Taejin’s expression, Hyo-sub heard a voice over the phone that seemed not just assertive but rather noisy.

“Yes, Professor! It’s Lee Suhyuk from your first-year class! I called you regarding a patient notification for the emergency room!”

“Okay. I’m with other people right now, so could you speak softly?”

“Oh, yes. Sorry about that.”

“No need to apologize. So, what kind of patient is it?” The sight of a disciplined first-year always pleased professors. It was quite satisfying when someone genuinely feared them.

“Yes, Professor. Park Kyungwon, a 53-year-old male who was admitted three months ago under your care for stage 2 nasopharyngeal cancer and received radiation therapy. Today, he presented at the emergency room with altered consciousness and limb paralysis as primary symptoms.”

“Hmm? Park Kyungwon…?”

“Yes. He last visited your outpatient clinic one month ago. On that day, he also attended the ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) department’s outpatient clinic. The endoscopy performed there showed no significant findings.”

“Hmm…” Taejin Jo nodded while trying to recall patient Park Kyungwon. It wasn’t easy with just his name and previous visit information.

“Is it brain metastasis?”

Instead, Taejin considered the most common possibility.

“I initially thought so and conducted an MRI, but there were no abnormalities found in the head region. I confirmed this with the on-call neurologist.” Lee Suhyuk read from the neurology records available nearby.

Although there was quite a lengthy explanation written on the chart, it summarized to nothing being found.

“Really? Then what did they find?”

“We expanded the MRI scan to include the nasopharynx during the examination.”

“Oh, good job. And?”

“May I send you one of the images? It would be better if we discuss this while looking at the picture.”

How bold…

Despite his thoughts, Taejin agreed.

In the age of 5G, the image arrived promptly. The first picture was from the MRI taken about a month and a half ago. As expected of a professor specializing in hemato-oncology, Taejin immediately recognized the patient upon seeing the image.

‘Ah, this patient. How strange… They were doing well?’

In medical terms, when cancer responds well to chemotherapy or radiation therapy, it’s referred to as “responding favorably” to treatment. This patient truly showed a favorable response.

Vrrr.

Soon after, today’s MRI images were transmitted to him. Since sending all the scans was impractical, only the most crucial sections focusing on the nasopharynx area were sent.

What the…?

The new images shocked Taejin. The drastic change made it almost unbelievable that they were from the same person.

A recurrence…perhaps?

The destructive appearance of the tumor wreaking havoc on surrounding structures was unmistakable. It had even breached the vertebrae protecting the spinal cord, clearly indicating cancer.

“Where…where is the patient now?”

Nasopharyngeal cancer recurring and causing paralysis was extremely rare.

Taejin Jo forgot about the dinner party as he shouted loudly, almost unrecognizable from his earlier request to Suhyuk to keep quiet due to others being present.

“She is in the emergency room, Professor.”

“Wait for me. I’m already at the front of the hospital, so I’ll be right there.”

“Oh… Yes, professor.”

Suhyuk felt disappointed since there were still many things left to notify Taejin Jo, but he couldn’t stop him once the professor decided to come.

“I’ll arrive in 5 minutes. Has only the MRI been done?”

“Yes. The blood test results came back, but we have only received the CBC (Complete Blood Cell Count). Her white blood cell count…”

“Yes, it’s done. Schedule a CT scan and bring me the admission papers.”

“Understood, Professor.”

Lee Suhyuk wanted to mention again that the high white blood cell count could indicate inflammation, but he was promptly cut off. After hanging up, Lee Suhyuk waited about five minutes before speaking to Taejin Jo once more. This delay occurred because their dinner, sponsored by the hospital for its professors, took place right outside the medical facility.

“Oh, Lee Suhyuk. Where is the patient?”

“He is over there now.”

“Lead the way.”

“Yes, Professor.”

“It’s strange indeed. He seemed fine during his outpatient visit…”

There was a reason why Professor Taejin Jo had rushed so quickly to the scene.

Was there something he missed? Could this have caused the patient’s current condition? As a doctor, Taejin felt a great sense of responsibility. However, his primary concern was whether this incident might tarnish his promising career.

Somehow… I need to find a way…

Perhaps due to these thoughts, Taejin Jo found it difficult to think clearly as usual.

Paralysis… Paralysis…

If the paralysis was due to the recurring cancer, they needed to administer radiation promptly. By reducing the size of the tumor, it could alleviate some symptoms, at least partially. Although curing the recurrent cancer completely was secondary, it was crucial not to prolong the patient’s paralysis for too long.

As Taejin Jo walked hurriedly, Suhyuk cautiously opened his mouth,

“P-Professor.”

“Hmm? Can’t this wait?”

“I haven’t mentioned my suspected diagnosis yet.”

“What? It’s a relapse! What more do you need!”

“Well…”

Suhyuk watched as Taejin Jo shouted right in front of him, unsure whether he should continue speaking or not.

[Baruda: Currently, Professor Taejin Jo is not thinking clearly. There is a high possibility that the patient may worsen.]

However, Baruda’s usual calm tone gave Suhyuk some confidence. Moreover, Suhyuk didn’t call Taejin Jo on a whim; he had near certainty about his observation.

He was almost 100% certain, and he had full confidence that he was correct.

“Professor, the patient’s paralysis changes continuously depending on his posture or time. Moreover, it did not gradually occur but suddenly appeared today. That is why I suspected an issue with the head.” Suhyuk spoke rapidly as if firing bullets from a machine gun.

It had been quite some time since someone had spoken to Taejin Jo so passionately. He silently listened due to both surprise at the changing paralysis symptoms and curiosity about Suhyuk’s explanation.

“If the lesion near the nasopharynx were cancerous, there would be no change. Cancer destroys surrounding tissues rather than compressing them.”

“Then…it’s not cancer?”

As Suhyuk continued explaining, his argument seemed plausible. As Suhyuk stated, cancer typically destroys surrounding tissues. Only benign tumors tend to grow innocuously without causing harm.

“Yes.”

“Hmm.” Taejin Jo finally stopped walking, considering that it might indeed not be cancer.

Meanwhile, Suhyuk persisted, determined to persuade him. “Although they appear messy on the scans, there are many non-cancerous lesions. However, we can differentiate them. It’s unlikely to suddenly develop an infectious disease either.”

“Yes…that’s true. So what do you suspect?”

“I…” Suhyuk swallowed as his mouth had become dry from talking continuously. He wiped around his mouth with his sleeve and straightened his tie. Then he answered with confidence while looking directly at Professor Taejin Jo’s face, “I suspect radiation necrosis.”