Chapter 1336: Is It a Parasite?

Chapter 1336: Chapter 1336: Is It a Parasite?

"Last time you ate a lot of Japanese food? How did the sashimi taste?"

Liu Banxia suddenly asked.

"Uh... not that great, it just tasted like wasabi, couldn’t taste the fish at all." The patient was taken aback but shared his feelings anyway.

"Did you go to a buffet or a high-end Japanese restaurant? I have to say, I’m craving it a bit too, planning to have a meal there when I get the time." Liu Banxia continued.

Wang Chao was getting a bit anxious, kept giving Liu Banxia looks to signal him, but Liu Banxia pretended not to notice.

The patient and his colleagues were also a bit speechless, is this doctor too off-topic?

We’re almost at a critical point with the brain tumor, and you’re concerned about this?

"Did you eat a lot?" Liu Banxia asked again.

The patient nodded, indeed ate a lot. If you don’t eat much, you won’t feel full.

"Wang Chao, help me see if Dr. Zhang Xiao has gone to eat, if not, call them over." Liu Banxia said.

Wang Chao was stunned, wasn’t he just joking around? It’s actually related to the patient’s condition?

Without much thought, he quickly took out his phone and dialed Zhang Xiao.

Actually, Zhang Xiao was eating at the moment, but upon hearing about the situation, he quickly ran back to the emergency center.

"Dr. Zhang, I might have missed an important factor. Do you think there’s any possibility that our patient’s brain mass is due to parasites?" Liu Banxia asked.

"We were just chatting, and the patient has eaten a large amount of sashimi, and it was before the New Year. If there were parasitic eggs, they should have developed into cysts by now, right?"

Zhang Xiao frowned, "That’s possible. But although there are some parasites on fish, they mostly get dissolved by our stomach acid."

"This relates to something I forgot to mention, the patient has a history of gastritis and is on omeprazole." Liu Banxia said with a troubled face.

"This... this... if you put it that way, it does seem possible." Zhang Xiao scratched his head.

"Even though the likelihood is low, we can’t entirely rule it out. After the screening results come in, do you think we should do a blood test or an enhanced CT, then directly remove it?"

"Doctor, wait, I don’t quite understand. Isn’t it a tumor in my head, but a worm?" the patient interjected.

Liu Banxia chuckled and nodded, "It’s very possible at the moment."

"Ah? Won’t it eat away my brain?" The patient was unsettled, truly terrified.

"Don’t worry, it’s in a cystic state right now. We just need to remove it, it’s a very simple minor surgery in neurosurgery." Liu Banxia explained.

"A brain tumor is different, it usually has a blood supply system, which is much more complicated to handle. Think about which situation is better."

The patient didn’t speak, truth be told, he didn’t want either situation. But from what Liu Banxia was saying, having a worm in the head seems a bit better?

"Doctor, should we all get checked then?"

At this point, the young man accompanying the patient asked nervously.

The issue has become significant; if it’s really because of the sashimi that worms got into their heads, everyone’s at risk.

If everyone had a worm in their head, this would be a huge problem.

"You all should be fine, his situation is somewhat special." Liu Banxia said.

"It’s also because he took omeprazole, which suppresses stomach acid production. If our stomach acid is low, it can’t completely kill some parasites in food."

"From my experience, patients with gastritis or reflux typically are long-term users of omeprazole."

"Even if doctors say you shouldn’t take it every day, they still often do, right? Over time, it does have a significant impact on the body."

"Hmm... I do take it every two or three days." The patient thought for a moment and replied.

"This is currently just our hypothesis. Next, we’ll look at the screen results, then perform an enhanced CT to check the blood supply." Liu Banxia said.

"If both tests are negative, we can proceed with surgery to remove it. Although all brain surgeries carry risks, this is the least risky one."

"Doctor, can’t we use some other method or medication?" the patient asked.

A bit afraid when thinking about the surgery.

Opening up my skull to catch the bugs inside. What if I accidentally damage my brain?

"If the parasites were elsewhere in the body, we might try controlling them with medication first. Some drugs can kill the parasites slowly and be expelled from the body," Liu Banxia said.

"But it’s different if the parasites are in your brain; they’re not easy to handle. The way to confirm is simple; we could do a biopsy."

"However, considering the risks of biopsies, it might be better to just remove it directly. There are many kinds of parasites, and we don’t know if the cyst fluid would cause an allergic reaction."

"I also suggest you have a full-body check-up to see if there are more parasites elsewhere. This can only be done if it’s confirmed to be a parasite."

This was Liu Banxia’s new diagnosis based on the patient’s comprehensive situation, and Zhang Xiao also agreed with it.

It could be a tumor, or it could be a parasitic cyst. Whenever there’s a possibility, you have to eliminate it to make a definitive diagnosis.

"How did you come up with this idea?"

Once alone, Zhang Xiao asked.

"Ah... forgot? I assisted Director Xiao in a surgery last time," Liu Banxia said with a wry smile.

"Some parasites aren’t afraid of stomach acid, or some people’s stomachs don’t function well, secreting less acid. The concentration isn’t enough, giving parasites an opportunity."

"The main issue was the tumor-like symptoms in the patient seemed ambiguous. You also suspected it, thinking the symptoms were not typical enough."

"Then I heard them discussing eating sashimi. High-end Japanese restaurants might handle ingredients seriously, but you can’t be certain. The chances of parasites in raw food are still high."

Zhang Xiao nodded, "Let’s wait and see the results. I’ve only eaten half, I need to go back and finish my meal."

After saying this, Zhang Xiao jogged back to the cafeteria.

"Tsk, tsk, if eating sashimi really led to this, could the patient sue the restaurant?" Wang Chao asked curiously.

"I think he’d definitely confront them, but it depends on how he handles it. If he goes alone, they probably won’t acknowledge it because so much time has passed; who knows where he contracted the parasite," Liu Banxia said.

"He could involve relevant departments for a sudden inspection and uncover something. Then, the issue would have grounds for discussion."

"But it’s quite difficult to prove, the cost of defending rights is high, and since it’s been a while, it’s not easy either."

"Seems like it, nowadays dining out feels quite risky," Wang Chao sighed.

"Food safety issues have happened a few times, haven’t they? The barbecue restaurant was the most dangerous, and now this young fellow seems at risk too."

"Besides, there are many patients with gastritis and esophageal reflux symptoms. Omeprazole has become a daily medication for them, but it’s not good to take it often."

"Whether to take it often or not, patients rarely heed doctors’ advice," Liu Banxia remarked.

"Unless in urgent cases, they follow doctor’s orders. Once the pain subsides, they do as they please. How many people shouldn’t drink alcohol but continue anyway?"

"The thought is that drinking a little shouldn’t matter. When symptoms return, they regret it."

"Including some diabetes patients, who can’t control their eating habits. Many patients we see come back for this reason, don’t they?"

"Currently, just the patient with auto-brewery syndrome is manageable. After fecal transplantation, it seems to be controlled."

Wang Chao nodded, "He couldn’t avoid carbohydrates in daily life. After the gut flora imbalance was improved with fecal transplantation, the brewing condition was controlled."

"So your work is very meaningful, even if the principles aren’t fully understood. We mastered methods to help patients, that’s success," Liu Banxia said with a smile.

Wang Chao felt helpless; he had complained about this topic to Liu Banxia, but Liu Banxia had the same reasoning.

Wang Chao wanted to make achievements in this area, but thinking now, it seems quite difficult.

So, just don’t think about it. As Liu Banxia said, helping patients is enough.

Today’s case of a suspected brain tumor or parasitic cyst also intrigued Liu Banxia. It was complex, with similar symptoms but vastly different impacts on the patient.

He admired Liu Banxia’s attention to detail.

He knew that even if he knew the patient’s history of taking omeprazole, he wouldn’t have considered this aspect.