Lu Xuan reached out to stop his older cousin who was still intending to persuade the old man. Just then, the tightly closed front door suddenly swung open.
Lu Guoquan hurriedly walked in without even having ti to take off his shoes. Seeing the strange atmosphere in the living room, he asked with a puzzled expression, "What’s going on here? Why is everyone so quiet?"
"Guoquan, why are you back?" Lin Fangling turned around, surprised to see it was Lu Guoquan.
She hadn’t had the chance to tell Lu Guoquan about Lu Qinian’s check-up results yet. Logically, Lu Guoquan shouldn’t have co back so early.
"Didn’t you say Xiaoxuan was coming ho?"
Lu Guoquan explained with a smile, "Well, there’s not much going on at the clinic anyway, and you asked to bring back so braised dishes, so I ca back early."
"But what’s the situation here? Why are Dad and Xiaoran also here?" Lu Guoquan said as he looked towards Lin Fangling.
"Brother, you’re back just in ti."
Before Lin Fangling could speak, Lu Ran directly said, "Didn’t I take Dad to the City First Hospital for a check-up a couple of days ago?"
"Hmm?"
"And then?"
Lu Guoquan frowned.
"The test results ca out."
Just those ten words left Lu Guoquan stunned. In the next mont, he seed to realize sothing as his expression darkened, "The results aren’t good?"
"Yes."
Lu Ran nodded, "Duodenal adenocarcinoma."
Cancer?
Lu Guoquan’s face instantly turned pale, almost losing his balance, and he quickly asked, "What’s going on? How did it turn into duodenal adenocarcinoma? I thought Dad seed quite spirited? And the county hospital’s previous check-up didn’t show any issues, how could this happen?"
Lu Guoquan was utterly confused and even a bit disbelieving.
He had just taken his father, Lu Qinian, to the county hospital for a check-up recently, and there wasn’t a hint of a problem.
Although the county hospital isn’t great, such a major issue as cancer shouldn’t go undetected!
"Brother, you’re aware of the situation at our county hospital. It’s fine for minor ailnts, but they can’t handle anything complicated. Many people get checked there and find no issues, but when they go to the city or provincial hospitals, they find lots of problems." Lu Ran said dismissively, clearly looking down on the county hospital.
But after complaining about the county hospital, seeing Lu Guoquan’s tense and worried face, Lu Ran tried to comfort him, "Brother, there’s no need to worry."
"How can I not worry?" Lu Guoquan said irritably.
"This isn’t so minor cold or sothing."
Although Lu Guoquan wasn’t a doctor himself, he ran a clinic and had seen more cancer patients than most people. From what he’d seen and heard, few cancer patients lived beyond three years from diagnosis, and almost none made it to five years.
Now that his father was diagnosed with cancer, how could he not be worried?
Lu Ran said, "Brother, Dad’s condition is still relatively light. Yongzhen just sent the report to a deputy director in the digestive departnt at the Second Provincial Hospital. They said it’s in the early stages, and with early detection and active treatnt, there’s no problem at all."
"Early stage, ah, that’s good, that’s good." Lu Guoquan let out a small sigh of relief.
If cancer is detected early and treated actively, the five-year survival rate is quite high.
"But..." Just as Lu Guoquan relaxed, he heard Lu Ran’s hesitant voice.
"But what?" Lu Guoquan’s heart, which had just settled, leaped back up into his throat.
Lu Ran glanced at Lu Qinian, who still looked a bit unwell, and said, "Dad doesn’t want to treat it. He says that paying attention usually is enough, and if he goes to the hospital for treatnt, he might only have a year or so left.
We’ve all tried persuading him for a long ti, but Dad is adamant, refusing to go to the Second Provincial Hospital for treatnt.
Yongzhen couldn’t think of any other way and contacted a doctor in the digestive departnt there to take a look. Their director said it just needed surgical treatnt and regular post-op check-ups, but Dad is stubborn and refuses."
"Dad..."
Hearing this, Lu Guoquan turned to Lu Qinian, "Dad, you can’t be this stubborn. We still need to treat it."
"No treatnt."
That cold statent left Lu Guoquan at a loss for words.
Perhaps feeling he’d spoken too harshly, the old man’s tone softened, and he sighed helplessly, "Guoquan, it’s not that I don’t want to treat it. You know my old friends, one after another, died from cancer. They went through surgeries and chemotherapy at the hospital, spent all that money, which, by the way, doesn’t concern whether it cos or goes.
But which one of them didn’t pass away shortly after?
If chemotherapy were truly effective, so many people wouldn’t die from it.
The only one still doing well is your Uncle Li. After doing surgery and chemo at the hospital for a short while, he gave up and went ho to see a traditional Chinese dicine doctor. His health has been pretty good since then and he hasn’t even gone for check-ups these past years.
In his words, it’s because he eats well, sleeps soundly, and feels no pain or itchiness. Why bother with check-ups?
If any checks find sothing wrong, wouldn’t that just add to one’s worries?
In any case, let say this again, I won’t agree to surgery and chemotherapy. As it is, Xiaoxuan just got back today, so I’ll stay for dinner and spend the night here, then head back to the countryside tomorrow.
This illness of mine, you guys don’t need to worry about it."
"How can we not worry!"
Lu Guoquan said irritably, "Dad, aren’t you just making this harder for us by saying that? If we did nothing, who knows what people would say?"
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