The Enhanced Doctor-Chapter 415 GPA

(Thanks to my friend Xin Wuyang for the encouraging tip) -> This line should be removed as per typical web novel translation standards unless explicitly requested to be kept. Assuming removal for a clean narrative.

The fully revised English translation.

Chen Hongyang felt a surge of panic as he viewed the endoscopy image.

He had been wrong from the very beginning. He’d initially planned to discuss treating it as pneumonia with the child’s parents. Thankfully, he hadn’t spoken up.

The current condition of the child’s lungs and trachea was highly abnormal. If medications were administered recklessly, the child’s life could be endangered by their effects.

Liu Banxia was also frowning, deep in thought, trying to determine which disease corresponded to the child’s current condition.

"Do you have any previous pictures of the child on your phone?" Liu Banxia asked the child’s mother.

The child’s mother quickly nodded, unlocked her phone, and handed it to Liu Banxia.

Liu Banxia carefully examined the photos, compared them to the child, and then said, "Dr. Chen, please arrange for another blood test and urine test. I suspect the child has GPA."

"Okay, I’ll arrange it right away," Chen Hongyang, after a moment’s hesitation, hurriedly nodded.

By now, he had forgotten the parents’ strong resistance to blood tests and other examinations. His sole focus now was the child.

Just moments ago, he had been racking his brain, wondering what illness this could be. Hearing Liu Banxia state the name, he felt a sense of sudden clarity.

"Doctor, what exactly is Shan Shan’s illness?" the child’s father asked anxiously.

"If our assessment is correct, it’s likely an autoimmune disease called Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis, or GPA for short," Liu Banxia explained.

"This disease can be very misleading. The child’s symptoms, including nosebleeds, sinusitis, and pneumonia, are all manifestations of it."

"Even the allergic reaction when his ears were checked last time was due to this disease. Just now, I compared the child’s eyeballs and found that they are slightly more protruded now than before."

"People with this disease often experience impaired kidney function. But don’t worry. If our diagnosis is correct, we will administer the appropriate medication."

"However, you also need to be mentally prepared. Treatment for autoimmune diseases is often lengthy, and even after it concludes, careful attention will be required in his future life."

"Apart from these considerations, Shan Shan should be able to lead a normal life. It’s just that he’s still very young, so you’ll need to provide him with more care."

"Dr. Chen is a specialist in pediatrics. If necessary, we can also invite other experts from our hospital for a consultation. Dr. Chen will explain the subsequent details to you."

That was all he could say for now. If it really was GPA, the subsequent recovery would be very challenging. However, a more detailed explanation wasn’t his responsibility; Dr. Chen needed to discuss it with the parents. He was only here for a consultation.

"Thank you, doctor. So, do we just wait for the test results now?" the child’s father asked.

Liu Banxia nodded. "Don’t worry, I’ll tell the lab to put a rush on it."

"Doctor, thank you so much," the child’s father said.

This expression of gratitude was heartfelt. After all, it was only after Liu Banxia’s arrival that they began to get some clarity on their child’s condition. And now, comparing Liu Banxia’s words with Shan Shan’s situation, it seemed all the described symptoms were present.

Of course, they wouldn’t blame Chen Hongyang for not making a clear diagnosis after such a long time. Liu Banxia had also mentioned that this disease presents with many symptoms and can easily lead to misdiagnosis.

This could be considered a testament to their trust in Liu Banxia. While not at the point of believing anything he said unquestioningly, they were close.

"All sorted?" Shi Lei asked when he saw Liu Banxia emerge.

Liu Banxia nodded. "Although it’s not yet fully confirmed, it’s probably GPA. The typical GPA triad affects the upper respiratory tract, lungs, and kidneys. Manifestations are present in the upper respiratory tract and lungs; we’ll assess the kidneys shortly."

"Moreover, the child exhibits an allergic disposition, proptosis, epistaxis, symptoms of sinusitis, and there are micro-clots and inflammation in the lungs and trachea."

"If that’s the case," Shi Lei frowned, "given Dr. Chen Hongyang’s medical expertise, it shouldn’t have taken this long to diagnose, should it?"

"The child’s parents are very resistant to instrumental and interventional examinations, so it’s mostly been observation," Liu Banxia explained.

"Such situations are indeed challenging to manage. Let’s hope this long delay hasn’t severely damaged the kidneys. Otherwise, dialysis might be necessary. Even if kidney function recovers eventually, the damage to a child this young would be substantial."

This was what he hadn’t mentioned to the parents earlier. They had already received a lot of bad news today; if he were to bring up this additional possibility, they likely wouldn’t be able to handle it.

Shi Lei understood immediately. Sometimes, although those instrumental examinations are somewhat invasive, they truly play a crucial role in diagnosing medical conditions.

"You go eat first; don’t make Qiaoqiao wait too long," Shi Lei said.

"You’ll keep an eye on things here then? I’ll save you a chicken leg later," Liu Banxia said, then jogged towards the lounge.

It was lunchtime, and besides, he really missed Qiaoqiao. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Oh? Secretary Liang, you’re out of surgery too?" Liu Banxia teased when he saw Liang Xiaolin there.

"Are you treating for lunch then?" Liang Xiaolin asked.

"Absolutely. Let’s go now. After we eat, we can relieve them," Liu Banxia replied.

Qiaoqiao was also very happy. Just when Liang Xiaolin arrived, she’d said Liu Banxia had been called away for a consultation and there was no telling when he’d be back.

Coming for lunch today was like being on an early shift; there weren’t many people in the cafeteria. However, they didn’t eat leisurely as they would during a break; everyone ate much more quickly. Only Qiaoqiao managed to eat a bit slower.

It was a matter of conscience, wasn’t it? When eating, you had to take turns. If you ate a little longer, someone else would have to stay hungry a little longer.

Zhou Qiang was very considerate; knowing Qiaoqiao was Liu Banxia’s girlfriend, he made their lunch today on the house.

"Liu Banxia, Liu Banxia? I finally found you!"

Just as they were enjoying their meal, Meng Qingfan arrived at the cafeteria and called out.

"Dr. Meng, what’s up?" Liu Banxia hurriedly swallowed the tofu in his mouth.

"Hehe, great news! That university student is showing improvement! Our hard work wasn’t in vain; we saved him!" Meng Qingfan said with a broad smile.

"That’s indeed good news. Otherwise, all the money spent on resuscitation would have been wasted," Liu Banxia remarked with emotion.

"Have you eaten yet? Join us for a bite. Oh, right, this is my girlfriend, Qiaoqiao. Although you’ve seen each other at the Emergency Center before, I haven’t formally introduced you."

"Hello, Dr. Meng," Qiaoqiao greeted him quickly.

"Hello, hello. You guys go ahead and eat. I just came from the ICU. When I didn’t see you there, I tracked you down here. I need to head back; I still have a couple of patients registered under me waiting," Meng Qingfan said and then quickly departed.

"That’s the first time I’ve ever seen Dr. Meng so excited," Liang Xiaolin remarked.

"It’s also because that case was so heart-rending. Was he a sophomore or a junior? His family is also facing some financial difficulties. He thought it was just a cold, so the illness was delayed until it became severe," Liu Banxia said.

"It’s a good thing Dr. Meng thought of using extracorporeal circulation to buy time. Otherwise, the only option would have been a heart transplant. And where would one easily get a heart transplant? Even if it were successful, the cost might have dragged the whole family down."

"Why is that? Is it because they can’t afford the surgery costs?" Qiaoqiao asked curiously.

"It’s not solely about the surgical fees. Finding a donor, potential post-operative rejection issues—there are many aspects involved."

"I have another patient today, a heavy truck driver. His health insurance payments lapsed, so he can’t benefit from coverage. It’s preliminarily determined to be pulmonary sarcoidosis. Dr. Liang, you know about this, right?"

Liang Xiaolin nodded. "Although the biopsy results aren’t out yet, everyone feels the prognosis isn’t looking good."

"Oh... I thought no one had trouble affording medical treatment these days," Qiaoqiao said.

"It’s not exactly that they can’t afford treatment. The key issue is that even if health insurance reimburses a significant portion, there are still many out-of-pocket expenses," Liu Banxia said with a smile.

"For example, for patients who’ve had surgery for rectal cancer, if they’ve had an abdominoperineal resection resulting in a colostomy, the colostomy bags they need must be purchased out-of-pocket. From what I currently understand, many patients use these bags longer than the prescribed period."

"It’s not that they don’t understand the drawbacks of doing so; the main issue is money. The monthly expenditure on just this aspect is several hundred yuan. For organ transplant recipients, the associated medication costs are even higher."

"Anyway, to put it simply: if you can avoid getting sick, by all means, do. Better to have anything than illness, better to lack anything than money. It’s not just a matter of money; the person suffers a lot, and things can go wrong, potentially leading to death."

"Regular physical check-ups absolutely mustn’t be neglected. Many diseases can be detected and dealt with in their early stages. The real fear with illnesses is delaying treatment; even benign conditions can turn malignant if dragged out."

"Alright, let’s not dwell on these things. This afternoon, continue to monitor them for me. See what on earth they’re all talking about. I feel like there’s nothing for us two to do, doesn’t it?"

Qiaoqiao rolled her eyes. Although she felt the same way, one couldn’t just say it so bluntly!

"Have you set a date for your wedding?" Liang Xiaolin asked curiously.

"The higher-ups are discussing it. Qiaoqiao and I just have to follow orders. But it will likely be after I step down as chief resident. We’re just too busy right now," Liu Banxia said.

"Besides, it’s hard to say how long Qiaoqiao’s and my honeymoon can be; it will depend on the circumstances at the time. If it really doesn’t work out, we’ll just have to break the honeymoon into segments and take a trip every once in a while."

"That’s such a pity. I don’t even know if I’ll be able to attend your wedding," Qing Kewa said.

"But you can come to my home for your honeymoon! I’ll treat you to delicious food and take you to fun places. There are many fun places where I live too."

"Haha, well, we’ll see when the time comes. You all eat slowly. I’m done. I’m going back to relieve Shi Lei," Liu Banxia said.

"Go on then. When I get home this afternoon, I’ll ask around properly," Qiaoqiao said, waving her hand.

She felt a pang of reluctance in her heart. How long had it been since she met up with Liu Banxia? And now he was busy, busy, busy again. Although this was something she had long anticipated, she still wished she could stay with him a little longer.