Life is Like a Journey – Chapter 43
by Little PandaVolume 1: Rise
Turmoil
Lu Qingshi kept that piece of candy for a very long time, until it melted, and still was not willing to eat it.
Later, Yu Gui recalled that day; everything that happened felt like a documentary shot with a long-focus lens, with a texture of time slowly flowing past.
Maybe some things were destined from the beginning, like her love with Fang Zhiyou, her becoming Lu Qingshi’s student, Lu Qingshi meeting Gu Yanzhi, Xiang Nanke falling in love with Qin Xuan, and, for example, the traffic jam that started before they even left the highway.
For the third time, Yu Gui opened the car door and got out to check; the long journey was still jammed with no end in sight.
She casually pulled over a waiting driver on the roadside and asked, “When will this road clear?”
The driver, smoking with a pile of cigarette butts at his feet, replied, “I don’t know; I’ve been waiting for more than four hours. They said there’s a chain car accident ahead.”
Yu Gui, annoyed, locked the car door. Doctor Zheng leaned on the steering wheel with his head hanging, and the doctor in the back seat punched the seat back: “We just happen to be blocked in the last ten kilometers!”
The life-saving heart is still ten kilometers away from miaomiao.
Yu Gui looked at the endless traffic flow, suddenly gritted her teeth, and unbuckled her seat belt.
“What are you doing?!”
Doctor Zheng reached to pull her but missed, as Yu Gui had already opened the trunk and taken out the insulated box.
“We can’t possibly wait here for four hours, and Miaomiao can’t wait that long either. I want to run back.”
“Are you crazy?! It’s so far…” Before he finished speaking, the two accompanying male doctors also got out of the car, took off their jackets, and rolled up their sleeves.
“We’ll relay run.”
A grateful and moved smile overflowed on Yu Gui’s face.
The chest cavity had already been opened, the heart was severely infected, almost as fragile as a piece of paper. The surrounding blood vessels were also severely malformed and all stuck together, with the right heart visibly swollen and the left ventricle only the size of a walnut.
Having performed heart transplants for over ten years, Director Zhang was also dealing with this tricky case for the first time, carefully using an electric knife to separate the heart’s surrounding blood vessels and nerves.
“Director Lu, you help me handle the inferior vena cava of the right atrium, and I’ll handle the aorta.”
“Okay.”
The two exchanged positions, and while operating, Lu Qingshi instructed the circulating nurse: “Call Yu Gui and ask her where she is now.”
Transplant surgery isn’t just about taking the organ out of the patient’s body and putting in a new one; it also requires considering how to connect it to minimize rejection reactions and maximize prolonging the patient’s life.
Beforehand, Yu Gui had been instructed to preserve more of the inferior vena cava, so she planned to cut off all the malformed parts. These unstable blood vessels would pose a hidden danger if left, so she planned to use the excess parts from the donor heart to compensate. If that didn’t work, she would use artificial blood vessels for replacement.
“Have you contacted them?”
The circulating nurse shook her head: “Doctor Yu is not answering the phone.”
“Then call Doctor Zheng.”
After a while, the circulating nurse, covering the receiver with an embarrassed expression, said: “Doctor Zheng says they are blocked at the highway exit.”
Lu Qingshi’s hand, holding the monopolar electric knife, paused for a moment.
As expected.
“Soon the heart removal will be completed, let them think of a way,” Director Zhang continued.
She was not an excellent student in physical education; during school fitness tests for 800 meters, she often failed. The feeling of running to the limit is very similar to respiratory failure; the air in her lungs was squeezed out, and the inhaled oxygen wasn’t enough to maintain blood perfusion to her whole body’s organs, which would lead to weakness, dizziness, vomiting, and blurred vision. Because of the discomfort, physiological tears seeped from the corners of her eyes, and those bright streetlights swayed unsteadily before her eyes, suddenly plunging the world into darkness.
Yu Gui staggered and fell, but was steadily supported up: “Captain Gu!”
She shouted out in surprise.
Gu Yanzhi rode a motorcycle swiftly against traffic, placing a helmet on her head. Seeing the flashing police lights approaching from behind, she patted the back seat: “Quickly, get on.”
Yu Gui nodded and, holding the insulated box, climbed onto her back seat: “Did Teacher Lu send you?”
“Hold on tight,” Gu Yanzhi didn’t turn her head, pressed the accelerator, and with a buzz, the motorcycle shot forward in the narrow traffic flow.
“Not long after you left, a chain accident happened on the highway. Qingshi predicted there might be a traffic jam and asked me to be ready to pick you up.”
The fierce wind whistled past her ears, distorting Yu Gui’s facial muscles slightly, and she grabbed her clothes tightly in terror.
Thinking: Teacher Lu truly is a divine person.
“This is…” Even though a complete preoperative CT scan and angiography were done beforehand, during the surgical exploration, an aneurysm with a diameter greater than 10cm was still found in the shadow on the backside of the aorta connected to the lung.
The position of the tumor is very tricky, next to the aorta and firmly adhered to the heart and lung. If only the heart is transplanted, it will certainly cut the tumor and cause massive bleeding. If the heart is not transplanted, then Miaomiao cannot leave the operating table. Now the only method is a heart-lung combined transplant, but finding a suitable heart source is already not easy, so where to find a qualified lung source?
“Forceps,” the instrument nurse handed the forceps to her hand.
Lu Qingshi did not lift her head, her brow and eyes resolute: “Take a risk.”
Betting on future and fate, to complete a seemingly impossible successful surgery.
Liu Changsheng became anxious and stood up from the observation room: “Doctor Lu, don’t mess around. First, go and discuss with the patient’s family.”
“You want to first separate the tumor from the aorta, then take the inferior vena cava to perform a bypass, and finally remove the tumor connected to the lung?”
He had only seen this method in foreign medical journals.
Lu Qingshi shook her head: “No, her blood vessels are too fragile. If the aorta bleeds, it simply cannot be ligated, so I want to use an artificial blood vessel to replace her aorta.”
“No way, the tumor’s surface has abundant blood vessels. Do you believe that your scissors won’t even touch it before it starts bleeding?”
“So I want to use an artificial heart-lung machine to replace the heart’s function,” she turned back and shouted to the anesthesiologist: “Is the extracorporeal circulation ready?”
Suddenly changing the surgical method, everyone was stunned for a moment, and Director Zhang put down the electric knife: “Doctor Lu, this is too reckless. If it fails, you will have to take responsibility!”
Lu Qingshi raised her head and glanced over the faces in the operating room, filled with fear, unease, and hesitation. They were all still very young or in their prime, and no one was willing to let a sudden change stain their career, even though everyone’s original intention was the same: to cure disease and save people.
She took a deep breath: “Change the main surgeon, I will remove the tumor and complete the entire aorta replacement surgery.”
She walked to Director Zhang’s position: “Later, when the heart source comes, switch back. Transplant isn’t my strong suit, so I hope you go all out.”
“You…” he still wanted to say something, but Lu Qingshi pushed him off the stage with her elbow.
“Anesthesiologist, is the extracorporeal circulation ready or not?” A person who always remained calm suddenly shouted, startling the anesthesiologist so much that he almost jumped up.
“Ready, eight thirty-five, extracorporeal circulation starts,” the anesthesiologist pressed the stopwatch: “The surgery was originally scheduled for six hours, and two hours and thirty-five minutes have already passed, so there isn’t much time left for Doctor Lu. The extracorporeal circulation can only last for twenty more minutes at most.”
After this time, He Miaomiao will suffer multiple organ failure and die.
Everyone in the operating room suddenly became tense.
“Forceps”
“Monopolar electric knife”
“Tissue scissors”
“Assistant, use the vein retractor to hold here”
“Good, give me the vessel clamp”
Lu Qingshi’s hand was very steady, not feeling anxious as time passed minute by minute. On the operating table, immersed in her own field, she was the unique queen.
“Fifteen minutes left!”
The anesthesiologist began to announce the time.
Lu Qingshi picked up the tissue scissors: “Prepare to remove the tumor.”
Everyone held their breath, calm and watching this scene.
She had already clamped the blood vessels at the upper and lower ends of the tumor beforehand. Without much hesitation, one hand slowly detached it, while the other hand cut along the detached trace to sever the supply between the tumor and surrounding tissue.
No bleeding occurred.
Director Zhang let out a huge sigh of relief, thanking God.
Lu Qingshi slightly closed her eyes, quietly calming her breathing, and used forceps to clamp the tumor out, placing it into the waste tray: “Send to pathology, tumor removal complete.”
“Next, replace with an artificial blood vessel.”
“Doctor Lu, there are ten minutes left!”
Lu Qingshi turned her head to glance at the clock on the wall, then lowered her head as a spray of blood splashed on her face, leaving the magnifying glass blurry, while the monitor sharply screamed.
“Blood pressure 50-80!”
“Blood oxygen is dropping!”
“Bleeding exceeds 50!”
“Hurry, bring five more units of red blood cells!”
Lu Qingshi shivered all over, her chest heaving violently as she watched the continuous flow of blood gushing out, with reddened eyes she forcefully pressed gauze on it.
“Drainage, drainage, faster!!!”
“Administer 5mg of dopamine through the catheter!”
“Increase oxygen flow!”
“Open another vein access!!!”
“Where’s the blood? Has the blood arrived?”
The usually calm person was somewhat hysterical, pressing the bleeding area with reddened eyes, not daring to move. A large piece of gauze quickly became completely soaked, and warm fresh blood splattered everywhere on her hands, sleeves, collar, and even her face.
Dean Meng took off his glasses and sighed deeply: Even Lu Qingshi can’t stop the bleeding?
“The blood is here, the blood is here!” The nurse rushed in and quickly hung the blood transfusion bag, but the blood pressure continued to drop. One blood reservoir was already filled, a total of 1000 milliliters.
“Blood pressure 30-60!” The anesthesiologist again administered the drug through the catheter to the vein.
The third piece of gauze in Lu Qingshi’s hand was also completely soaked. She threw it into the waste tray but did not pick up a new one. Instead, she tremblingly grasped the needle holder.
“There’s too much bleeding, if we don’t stop it quickly, the patient will die!” Director Zhang also urgently broke out in a sweat.
“I know,” Lu Qingshi said with reddened eyes, searching for the bleeding point in the surgery field blurred by the bleeding.
“We must quickly find the bleeding point to sew it up; gauze pressing can’t stop the blood.”
“Suction, suction, faster!” An assistant hurriedly tried, and Director Zhang pushed him aside: “I’ll help you!”
Lu Qingshi nodded, feeling the broken part in the warm blood flow. Time seemed to slowly stretch; she should have been focused, yet thought of the first time she met Miaomiao.
That was her first year at Renji Medical University, frustrated and downcast. Miaomiao was just two years old and diagnosed with congenital heart disease. As her mother held her and left, the small child stretched her palm in front of her, revealing a melted White Rabbit milk candy.
In a sticky, unclear voice: “A… Auntie… eat… eat…”
Lu Qingshi kept that piece of candy for a very long time, until it melted, and still was not willing to eat it.
Her nose felt very sour, and her chest was very tight. She glanced at He Miaomiao, who was pale-faced with a tube in her mouth, tears filled her eyes, but she desperately controlled them not to fall.
“Bleeding point… where on earth?” she gritted her teeth, her eyes reddened, tears swirling in her eyes, and sweat soaked through her surgical gown.
“Doctor Lu, circulation has stopped, can still persist for five more minutes!”
“Auntie Lu, when I get better, will you play with me?”
“Okay.”
“Circulation has stopped, can still persist for three more minutes!”
“Miaomiao, goodbye,” she waved to her in farewell.
She also stood in a bright light to say goodbye to her: “Auntie Lu, goodbye.”
“Circulation has stopped, can persist for one more minute!”
The small child finally stood up, and the door in front of her opened. She turned back to look at her dad and mom, with tears: “Dad, mom, goodbye.”
“No!!!” Lu Qingshi roared, as the anesthesiologist counted down, she picked up an artificial blood vessel with tweezers.
Her hand speed was so fast it dazzled people, a kind of beauty that can only be captured by a high-speed camera.
Dean Meng put his glasses on again, his hand unconsciously tightening on the chair arm.
“Five”
A heartbeat sounded like a drumbeat.
“Four”
“Three”
“Two”
One hand held the needle, while the other quickly tied knots; this was the instinct accumulated over many years. At a certain moment, Meng Jihua even felt that she surpassed the existence of a surgical robot. The Lu family cultivated such talent, yet Lu Qingshi herself is rebellious. Is this fortunate or unfortunate?
With another perfect and neat surgical knot, Lu Qingshi picked up the thread scissors and, along with the anesthesiologist’s countdown, completed the surgery.
“One!”
“Artificial blood vessel replacement completed!” she gasped, her sweat-soaked clothes heavy, as the thread scissors clattered into the tray. Due to high-speed exertion in a short time, her wrist inevitably twitched, but her face overflowed with a relieved smile.
Director Zhang was dumbfounded, looking at the perfectly sutured and hemostatic wound. Was this really not done by a surgical robot?
A sense of respect and fear arose spontaneously.
The bleeding in the blood storage tank stopped, and after a moment of silence, everyone in the operating room erupted into cheers.
Hao Renjie rushed up to embrace her shoulder: “Sister Lu, you are amazing!”
Lu Qingshi smiled slightly, using her left hand to hold her still trembling right wrist, gritting her teeth and slowly saying: “It’s not over yet.”
She gently released the hemostatic clamps on the upper and lower ends of the artificial blood vessel.
Everyone’s eyes were fixed on this scene as bright red blood slowly flowed through the artificial blood vessel, and the sutured area did not bleed.
The artificial heart-lung machine had already stopped.
Lu Qingshi briefly closed her eyes, slightly curving her lips, and looked at Miaomiao: “Keep going, baby, you will get better.”
Blood circulated through the body and flowed back into the heart, and the right ventricle suddenly contracted. Everyone held their breath, but the long-anticipated heartbeat did not appear. The line on the monitor began to fluctuate violently, and a sharp alarm sounded like a curse.
“Beep beep—beep beep—”
The anesthesiologist jumped up from the seat: “Not good, ventricular fibrillation!”
One wave had not settled before another arose, Lu Qingshi’s eyes were bloodshot, and she trembled as she shouted: “Defibrillator!”
LP: Ahhhhhh!!!!!!!
0 Comments