At Zhongyun Kangfeng Hospital’s VIP ward, Su Jing, Lu Qinming, and other doctors are receiving a special patient at this moment. The Patient is a middle-aged man is sitting in a wheelchair, with limbs paralyzed and neck twisted to one side, supported by a brace.
Behind him are a middle-aged woman, a young man, and a young woman, all looking at Su Jing and the others with a hint of hope in their eyes.
“Dr. Su, all doctors, please save my husband,” The middle-aged woman pleaded with tears in her eyes.
“I’m afraid we can’t do anything about this disease.” Lu Qinming sighed, and other doctors also shook their heads in dismay. They were all thinking that the 100% success rate of the VIP ward might be broken today.
The middle-aged man in the wheelchair suffers from an incurable disease called Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), which is one of the world’s five major incurable diseases.
It is not something that can be compared to previous diseases Su Jing had faced such as blindness, cough, infertility, and so on.
ALS is also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, which is a degenerative disease that affects the nerves in the brain and spinal cord that control muscle movement.
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a debilitating and malignant neurodegenerative disorder.
The name itself conveys the devastating impact it has on the human body, rendering the affected person completely immobile, and it would feel as if one is trapped in ice and snow.
However, this is not an immediate or sudden process, but rather a gradual decline in physical ability as certain parts of the body weaken and shrink.
The underlying pathology of ALS involves the progressive degeneration of two types of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, known as the upper motor neurons and lower motor neurons.
These nerve cells play a critical role in controlling voluntary movements of the body, such as walking, talking, and swallowing.
When these neurons become damaged, the muscles they control gradually weaken and atrophy, leading to an inability to perform even the most basic tasks.
One area of the body particularly affected by ALS is the bulbar region, which refers to the muscles innervated by the medulla oblongata. These muscles are crucial for functions such as chewing, speaking, and swallowing.
As ALS progresses, the disease spreads to other parts of the body, including the limbs, trunk, chest, and abdomen, leading to a widespread loss of muscle function and ultimately, a complete loss of mobility.
The Ice Bucket Challenge is a viral social media campaign that became immensely popular in the summer of 2014.
The challenge involved participants filming themselves pouring a bucket of ice water over their heads and then challenging their friends to do the same or donate to an ALS charity.
The campaign quickly gained momentum, and many celebrities and public figures joined in, leading to the widespread awareness of the disease.
The primary goal of the Ice Bucket Challenge was to raise funds and awareness for ALS.
The funds raised from the challenge went towards research into new treatments and a cure for the disease, as well as supporting individuals and families affected by ALS.
The world’s most famous individual with ALS who holds the highest level of global recognition should undoubtedly be the renowned physicist, Hawking. It is undeniable that he is a legend.
He demonstrated the singularity theorem and the area theorem of black holes, introduced the concept of black hole evaporation, and put forward the boundaryless Hawking universe model, making a significant contribution towards the unification of two fundamental 20th-century physics theories – relativity and quantum mechanics.
His publication “A Brief History of Time” was a sensation all over the world and has sold almost ten million copies across the world.
He is widely acknowledged as one of the most exceptional physicists following the likes of Newton and Einstein, and is referred to as the “Master of the Universe.”
However, even this genius could not resist the disease. Due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, he has been confined to a wheelchair for half a century, and no one can cure him until now.
He, unfortunately, contracted amyotrophic lateral sclerosis at the age of 21, and originally only had two years to live. However, he miraculously lived for two more years, and the deterioration of the disease gradually slowed down.
But the damage caused by ALS has permanently remained. He can only move three fingers, and the disease has severely deformed his body.
His head can only tilt to the right, his left shoulder is lower than the right, his hands are tightly clasped in the middle, holding a small sound keyboard, and his two feet are twisted inward. His mouth has almost twisted into an “S” shape.
As long as he slightly smiles, he will immediately show a “grinning” expression.
In short, ALS is a worldwide problem that has no known cure. Faced with this problem, Lu Qinming and others, besides being helpless, can only think that Su Jing himself must be feeling very helpless at this moment.
He had been successful in curing many diseases but suddenly, such a patient appeared. This is too much to deal with.
However, Su Jing didn’t pay any attention to Lu Qingming’s words and said: “We will do our best to treat it, but I think you should also know the difficulty of treating this disease. I cannot guarantee that I can cure it.”
Lu Qinming listened with wide eyes as he looked at Su Jing with an incredulous expression on his face. According to Su Jing’s words, it seemed that he really intended to try to cure this disease.
But this should not be a matter of being unable to guarantee, but definitely impossible to cure, right?
“We understand, we will have no complains as long as Dr. Su is willing to do his best to treat it.” The middle-aged woman nodded happily.
“Doctor Su, is there really a possibility that my father’s illness can be cured?” The young man and woman stared at Su Jing. Of course, they hoped that their father’s illness could be cured, but they also knew that this was an incurable disease.
In fact, before they came, they did not have much hope. Su Jing’s answer exceeded their expectations.
However, they were also worried that Su Jing might be only trying to make money and using a delaying tactic, saying it nicely now that he would try his best to cure him before saying that there was actually no possibility of a cure at a later date.
You can read ahead upto 110 chapters on my patreon and I’ve also activated (date to date) subscription model on my patreon https://www.patreon.com/GGS6395
(PS-Patreon For This Translation is Up. You guys can read 110 Chapters Ahead there)
Support me on Patreon for extra chapters