Chapter 3389: I Must Be Completely Cured!

Hank's skyrocketing CA199 index finally made over a dozen people in the group realize that Ye Chen indeed possesses an invisible ability that can determine life and death.

At this moment, Hank was also terrified out of his wits; he immediately accepted the injection of the contrast agent and was then pushed into the hospital's full-body CT room.

The massive machine whirred wildly around him, the tremendous vibrations, roaring sounds, and alarm noises amplified his inner panic.

Previously, such advanced medical equipment represented technological power, financial power, and also a sense of reassurance to him.

But now, this equipment made him extremely anxious and fearful.

Since this scan requires rotating the person from head to toe for two round trips, the duration is quite long, making it even more tormenting for him.

Just as he felt he could barely breathe, the machine finally stopped operating and pushed him out of the large ring.

The lead door shielding radiation slowly opened, and the private doctor and several nurses hurriedly moved him onto a mobile bed and sent him back to his ward.

On the way, Hank couldn't help but ask: "How are the scan results?"

The private doctor replied: "Mr. Hank, please don't rush; the full-scan data volume is huge, so we need to wait for the computer to merge and analyze. Please return to the ward and wait a bit—I've already communicated with the attending Dr. Johnson, and he will come in person to inform you as soon as there are results, so I won't waste time relaying messages."

"Okay..." Hank lightly nodded, his anxiety growing worse.

In the ward, Hank lay listlessly and despairingly waiting for half an hour when the attending doctor pushed the door open, came directly to his bedside, and with a solemn expression explained: "Mr. Hank, we analyzed your plain scan results and found that, under contrast agent, your pancreas clearly shows abnormal signs. We gathered multiple experts to review the images, and they unanimously concluded it should be pancreatic cancer."

Hank hurriedly asked: "Can it be confirmed just from the images?"

Dr. Johnson nodded and said: "The images, combined with the abnormal CA199 marker, basically confirm it. Of course, final confirmation still requires pathological results, which are paramount."

Hank asked again: "Then what should be done next? What stage is my pancreatic cancer currently at?"

Dr. Johnson said: "Based on our preliminary assessment, it is still an early-onset stage of pancreatic cancer, after all, the previous checkup was normal, and from the plain scan results, no lymph node or distant metastasis has been found so far."

"That's great!" Hank breathed a sigh of relief.

Early-stage cancer has a much higher cure rate, and he was well aware of this.

However, Dr. Johnson was now somewhat pessimistic, his expression grave as he said: "Mr. Hank, pancreatic cancer itself is a disease with a very poor prognosis; even if it's early-stage and we perform a total pancreatectomy, the five-year survival rate is the worst among all cancers."

Hank nervously asked: "The worst? Not even among the top?"

Dr. Johnson replied: "Overall, it doesn't even rank—it's simply the worst."

Hank asked: "Then will my surgery be effective?"

Dr. Johnson answered: "Currently, we don't find it optimistic, because it progresses too quickly—three months, the marker doubles, proving cancer cells are growing at an extremely fast rate, advancing aggressively. The more aggressive the cancer, the worse the prognosis."

Hank wiped cold sweat and asked: "Then what is the treatment plan you've devised for me now?"

Dr. Johnson said: "I came to discuss surgery with you. Our current plan is to operate as soon as possible, urgently removing the pancreas."

Hank asked: "If the pancreas is removed, how long can I live? Five years?"

"Uncertain." Dr. Johnson said: "Pancreatic cancer is currently the hardest to predict—not only does it develop rapidly and is highly lethal, but sometimes even after complete removal, it suddenly reappears in a nearby organ, so luck also plays a role. However, one thing is basically certain: pancreatic cancer patients, regardless of how early detected, have a five-year survival rate below 10%, and a ten-year survival rate of essentially zero."

Saying this, Dr. Johnson added: "Let me put it this way—if thyroid cancer were the Italian army in WWII, then pancreatic cancer would be the German army in WWII."

Hank asked: "Wasn't Hitler ultimately defeated too?"

Dr. Johnson supplemented: "In this analogy, the human body can be likened to Poland."

"Damn!" Hank said: "Then if Japan could get hold of it, they could also conquer Poland!"

"Yeah." Dr. Johnson said: "Just not that fast—Hitler's speed in conquering Poland resembles pancreatic cancer's progression speed; pancreatic cancer is like the Nazis, like Hitler among cancers."

Hank murmured: "So even if you use the fastest speed to remove it, I'd still find it hard to survive five years..."

Dr. Johnson comforted: "Now isn't the time to think about these things; the urgent priority is to rush into surgery and remove it as soon as possible—the sooner, the better! Ideally, we should start preoperative checks and preparations now, aiming for surgery within 48 hours."

"48 hours?" Hank asked him: "Why do we still have to wait that long?"

Dr. Johnson replied: "Before surgery, there are many indicators to test; we must confirm eligibility before proceeding. The simplest is checking coagulation issues, and infectious disease status also needs checking. Moreover, before surgery begins, the lead surgeon's team must hold a consultation to discuss and finalize the surgical plan. Only after everything is confirmed correct can surgery proceed."

Hank pondered for a long time, then said: "How about this—you do whatever tests you need. If blood draws are required, just do them quickly. The images have already been taken, right? Let the doctors start researching the surgical plan. I have some matters to attend to—I need to go to Huaxia and try to return within 48 hours."

Dr. Johnson assumed Hank still had work to attend to and hurriedly said: "Mr. Hank, given your current condition, you're not fit to work again—just rest in bed in the hospital!"

"No way!" Hank blurted: "I must go to Huaxia. If things go smoothly, I'll return in forty-eight hours. You don't need to arrange my surgery—just give me another checkup then. Who knows, I might already be cured."

"How could that be..." Dr. Johnson said bluntly: "Huaxia's medical level overall cannot compare to ours. Their doctors are strong in clinical experience—similarly, one surgery, ours do dozens a year, theirs do hundreds a year. But in terms of foundational theory and development of new drugs, we are still stronger, a fact unmatched worldwide."

Hank waved his hand: "Let's not talk about these for now. As you said, America's medical level is first in the world, yet I also only have a 10% chance of surviving past five years. Five years pass in a flash—you're letting me die so fast, I can't accept it. I must be cured! Completely cured!"

Dr. Johnson hurriedly said: "Mr. Hank, complete cure is impossible! Moreover, if pancreatic cancer isn't met with swift and effective intervention, survival time is basically only half a year!"

Hank flared up: "I didn't say no intervention! You said you need 48 hours to prepare, right? Then I'll use these 48 hours to go to Huaxia—no matter what, I'll return within forty-eight hours!"