A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 449

87. Cold Wave (5)

Seoul Shinwon University Hospital.

Ah-young was on duty in lab room 701 of the research building.

Even professors weren’t entirely free from on-call duties.

Due to the nature of surgery, they never knew when an emergency patient that the residents couldn’t handle might come in.

In fact, Ah-young had performed emergency surgery on a patient with aortic dissection during her on-call duty three months prior.

“Hoo~”

Ah-young’s sigh filled the lab. Her eyes were dry, and her mind was foggy. Looking out the window, she saw the night sky.

Before coming to work, Jun-hoo had used his ‘Inner Force Infusion Technique’ on her. It was a good thing, or she would have passed out already.

Ah-young got up from her seat and stretched vigorously.

She stretched lightly as well.

Only then did her mind clear up a bit.

Ah-young had to submit a paper to the Korean Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery Association by this summer.

Other professors used their fellows and residents extensively, but kind-hearted Ah-young couldn’t bring herself to do that.

「Don’t do to others what you don’t want to be done to you.」

It was one of the golden rules that Ah-young had been keeping since she was young.

Upholding the right values was both rewarding and tiring.

Beeep.

The cell phone rang at that moment.

‘Is it an emergency surgery? This is a bad time.’

Ah-young took out the cell phone she had put in her gown pocket.

When she checked the number, it was Jun-hoo.

She couldn’t help but tilt her head because he rarely called at this hour.

“Hey, Jun-hoo. What’s wrong?”

-Ah-young, I’m sorry, but I need to give you a patient notification.

“Of course.”

-It might be a bit long.

Jun-hoo’s explanation continued, and Ah-young listened quietly.

After hearing the notification, she thought it was worth calling.

“So, routine tests and EKGs show nothing wrong, but when you tested with your inner force, you found something wrong with the heart?”

-That’s right.

“Specifically, what’s wrong?”

-I feel left ventricular hypertrophy (thickening of the heart muscle). It doesn’t seem that severe, though.

“Well, if it wasn’t severe, there wouldn’t have been any signs on the chest X-ray.”

Ah-young nodded.

Once again, she was impressed by Jun-hoo’s inner force examination technique.

When Jun-hoo first said that he had learned superpowers in a place called Murim [a fictional world of martial arts], Ah-young didn’t believe it.

She scoffed, thinking he was joking with her.

But not now.

The reason Jun-hoo was able to perform such incredible feats was because he had incredible abilities.

“What about the heart valves?”

-All the valves are normal.

“No hypertension either?”

-No. That’s why I’m going crazy. Why did left ventricular hypertrophy occur?

Jun-hoo answered in a frustrated voice.

Being obsessed with patients was the same in the hospital and in the military. Jun-hoo was a sunflower [someone who is devoted or fixated] towards his patients.

“Can you switch me to the patient for a moment?”

-Okay.

Ah-young conducted a phone interview with the patient Jun-hoo switched her to. She grilled him about his family history, medical history, and symptoms.

But she couldn’t find any useful clues.

The fact that a young man in his early twenties with no underlying diseases had left ventricular hypertrophy was a major challenge for Ah-young as well.

Why did left ventricular hypertrophy occur?

And how should it be treated?

Because it was a patient Jun-hoo had asked for, she wanted to do something for him with her own hands.

After thinking deeply, Ah-young finally opened her mouth.

“Jun-hoo, have the patient lift up his shirt.”

-Suddenly?

“Yeah. Just do as I say.”

-Okay. Huh? What’s this?

Jun-hoo’s bewilderment was vividly conveyed over the phone.

-There are dark red patches spreading around his belly button. The patient says he wasn’t injured?

“Of course, he wasn’t injured. That’s angiokeratoma [small, benign skin lesions].”

With the conviction that she had found the answer, Ah-young smiled.

Angiokeratoma.

A dark red skin rash that occurs on the surface of the skin.

It is caused by vascular malformations, vascular compression, and chronic irritation, but the cause for this patient was slightly different.

“Jun-hoo. Listen carefully to what I’m about to say.”

* * *

Two hours later, the emergency room of the Korea Manual Therapy Hospital.

Jun-hoo and Sung-tae were sitting across from the cardiologist, looking at him.

“Wow… I didn’t even think of this.”

The cardiologist clicked his tongue.

Just now, echocardiography, special blood tests, and genetic tests were completed.

As a result, Sung-tae, who was thought to be normal, was found to be abnormal.

Sung-tae had a rare disease.

It was a rare disease that less than 200 people in Korea had.

“I’ve only seen it in papers, I never thought I’d actually see it.”

The cardiologist, who had been looking at the monitor, turned his head towards Sung-tae.

“This is clearly my mistake. I’m sorry to you, and I’m sorry to you.”

The cardiologist apologized to Jun-hoo and Sung-tae.

He bowed deeply, not just his head but his waist.

“Doctor, it’s not your fault. Anyone would have done the same in that situation.”

Jun-hoo comforted the cardiologist.

The cardiologist had done as much as he could. It was just that the disease Sung-tae had was so rare that he missed it.

Above all, Jun-hoo liked the cardiologist’s attitude.

He immediately admitted his mistake and apologized.

Most doctors would have been busy making excuses, saying it was a rare disease and there was nothing they could do.

“By the way, that’s amazing. How did the neurosurgeon diagnose ‘that disease’?”

“My girlfriend is a thoracic surgeon. I got some help.”

“What a wonderful couple. Well, since it’s in the early stages, I don’t think you have to worry too much.”

The cardiologist continued to explain.

He would have to see an outpatient clinic regularly once a month.

The treatment would be done with medication.

It wasn’t enough to be medically discharged.

It was best to be excluded from winter training, and so on.

After listening to the precautions and taking the medication, Jun-hoo left the emergency room.

“Company Commander. Thank you so much. Thanks to you, I was able to get treatment quickly.”

Sung-tae bowed to Jun-hoo.

“That’s what a medical officer is supposed to do.”

“Still, wouldn’t I have discovered the disease much later if it weren’t for you?”

“……”

“I heard it’s a disease that’s hard to treat if it’s discovered later.”

Sung-tae brushed his chest in relief.

The name of the disease diagnosed by the cardiologist was….

‘Fabry disease’.

Fabry disease is a rare genetic disorder that can cause significant kidney and heart dysfunction if left untreated.

So, when diagnosed with severe symptoms, major surgery is unavoidable.

What would have happened if he hadn’t met the Company Commander?

Sung-tae shuddered at the thought.

“Well, if you’re so grateful, there is a way to repay me.”

“If you tell me, I will definitely repay your kindness.”

“It’s nothing special.”

Jun-hoo scratched the back of his head with an embarrassed expression.

“I run NewTube, you know? Subscribe and watch the videos. If possible, recommend it to others.”

“Is that really all you want?”

“Why, did you think I was going to ask for money?”

Jun-hoo laughed, and Sung-tae laughed along with him.

* * *

The car Jun-hoo was driving pulled out of the unit.

He returned to the regiment, admitted Sung-tae to the regimental ward, and was heading back to the winter camp.

Perhaps because he had visited the hospital in the early morning, spent a long time at the hospital, and visited the unit again.

The yellow east was rising from the horizon.

‘As expected, it’s Ah-young.’

Jun-hoo smiled as he thought of Ah-young.

Ah-young managed to catch Fabry disease, which even the cardiologist had missed. She had made a decisive contribution to this treatment.

It meant that Ah-young had also grown while Jun-hoo was training at Meiyu [a place where Jun-hoo trained in martial arts].

‘Come to think of it, I haven’t studied rare diseases enough…….’

Jun-hoo’s brow furrowed.

While Sung-tae was undergoing echocardiography and genetic testing, Jun-hoo also searched for Fabry disease.

Surprisingly, Fabry disease was also related to neurosurgery.

Although rare, genetic malformations also affected cerebral blood vessels.

If Sung-tae had come to the neurosurgery outpatient clinic, would he have been able to diagnose Fabry disease?

Jun-hoo didn’t think so.

He would have sent him back, saying there was nothing wrong with his brain as a result of the examination.

Certainly, the path of medicine was as wide as the sea. Diligent study and a humble attitude were important.

Jun-hoo reflected for the first time in a long time.

After completing the boost-up program at Meiyu for 7 years.

To be honest, he was complacent, thinking there was nothing more to learn.

‘I need to make the net a little tighter.’

Jun-hoo’s eyes shone sharply.

While serving in the military, he would research treatments for brain death and vegetative state patients.

It would be good to delve deeper into rare diseases.

While driving, Jun-hoo called Ah-young.

Because he was from Murim, his mind was not distracted even if he talked on the phone while driving.

Jun-hoo notified Ah-young of what had happened.

Ah-young sighed in relief, saying it was a relief.

“Ah-young, thanks to you, I saved some face?”

-I just put a spoon on it [contributed a small part]. It was you who found out about the patient’s cardiac hypertrophy with the inner force echocardiography.

“……”

-If I had only trusted the cardiologist’s diagnosis, Fabry disease would have been revealed 10 years later?

Ah-young praised Jun-hoo.

She wasn’t just pretending to be humble, she was saying it from the bottom of her heart.

What would happen if people knew Jun-hoo’s true identity?

Everyone would be convinced that Jun-hoo had come to where he was now with inner force and martial arts.

But Ah-young thought differently.

Jun-hoo’s real weapon was always ‘sincerity’ towards his patients.

Even if you have ‘skill’, you can’t become first-class if you don’t have ‘interest’ in the patient.

Among the leading doctors in Korea, not a single person saw patients as a means of making money or filling their own honor.

“By the way, aren’t you getting off work today?”

Ah-young asked.

“There’s no getting off work during training. I have to stay with the soldiers.”

“That’s too bad. I need to get inner force infusion.”

Jun-hoo chuckled at Ah-young’s answer.

“You’ve been addicted to inner force infusion lately?”

“Yeah. That’s right. After bread, my favorite thing is inner force infusion. Once I get it in the morning, the effect lasts until the evening, so how can I not love it?”

While chatting, Jun-hoo suddenly thought of ‘that guy’.

If he brought up ‘that guy’ as a topic, it would be like pouring cold water on it…….

Should he do it or not?

After much deliberation, Jun-hoo raised his hand to the former.

“Ah-young, are you being careful?”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Because of Si-ho.”

“Ah…….”

A long sigh flowed from beyond the cell phone.

Ah-young was well aware of Si-ho.

Originally, Si-ho was planning to kill Ah-young.

He judged that killing the person Jun-hoo loved would cause Jun-hoo more pain than killing Jun-hoo.

But wasn’t Jun-hoo the one who had faced countless villains in Murim?

Si-ho’s plan was already in Jun-hoo’s grasp.

So Jun-hoo waited in the thoracic surgery conference room instead of Ah-young.

That’s when the stabbing occurred, and the stabbing was filmed, which made Si-ho’s crime even worse.

But surprisingly, there was also a silver lining to the stabbing.

That incident led Jun-hoo to reveal to Ah-young that he was a Murim person.

“There’s nothing wrong yet.”

“You always have to be careful. Especially when you go into the officetel [a studio apartment], check if anyone is following you.”

“Could there still be a grudge?”

“Yes. Definitely. He’s the kind of guy who would do even more.”

Jun-hoo gritted his teeth.

“I’ll try to find a way to deal with him as soon as possible. This time, I have to make the first move.”

Jun-hoo’s voice was determined.