The Surgeon’s Studio

“Let’s go to the interventional radiology suite,” Su Yun said just as Zheng Ren was about to make the call.

“Okay.” How did Su Yun know? Zheng Ren had no clue and could not be bothered to ask the nancy boy, who would surely respond with sarcasm.

“Just try your best, and remember, giving up doesn’t mean failure,” Su Yun advised along the way.

“Is it legal for us to perform surgery here?” asked Zheng Ren upon realizing the potentially major issues that could arise.

Su Yun smirked. “It’s too late for you to think of that now.”

“…”

“The patients have signed informed consent documents long ago. None disagreed after knowing that the top experts in the country will be performing surgery on them. Our medical certificates, licenses to practice, and both photocopies of and original identity cards have been submitted to the medical administration division for the record as well. There won’t be any problems,” Su Yun added.

Zheng Ren was finally relieved. He had been so immersed in thought about the patients’ conditions and diagnoses that he had forgotten about this particularly complicated issue. However, it was hardly his fault as such affairs were usually handled by hospital management.

Fortunately, he had Su Yun, who was clearly the perfect assistant.

Whether Su Yun also thought the same remained a mystery.

Perhaps he was more interested in establishing that pet medical center.

“The professors are standing by, so don’t push yourself too hard if you can’t complete the surgery.” Su Yun repeated tirelessly. “Your illness has weakened you; you’re profusely sweating after that short walk. Did you do something unspeakable behind my back last night?”

“…” Zheng Ren was speechless.

…

…

All patients were transferred to the operating table at eight o’clock sharp.

After the doctors repeatedly confirmed the patients’ medical records and imaging films, six surgeries began at the same time.

Mu Tao was in a good mood. He had performed retrograde 3D image reconstruction of the 64-slice CT scans and compiled the data of three patients in the past two days.

The image reconstruction of the CT films made him feel that he had fully grasped the patients’ conditions, which felt exhilarating!

There was absolutely no need to worry about intraoperative accidents in the slightest.

Mu Tao glanced at Old Wu, who was chatting with a few elderly professors, and left with a smile.

A doctor working in the hospital was instructed to assist Mu Tao in surgery. They then proceeded to change their attire.

When he began to scrub up, he noticed that Jin Yaowu and the rest had come to perform the surgical scrub at almost the same time. All of them were now at the same starting line.

However, Mu Tao firmly believed that the competition, which was merely a transition, was now completely unnecessary.

After all, he had mastered a core technology, one that could significantly minimize the risk of intraoperative accidents, while others had not. Was there still a need to compete? Absolutely not!

The doctor from Sea City had been smart enough to find an excuse to leave before the surgery began. As for Jin Yaowu and the rest… Hehe, the truth would utterly humiliate them!

Without letting pride consume his mind, he began to recall the imaging films of the patient who was about to undergo surgery.

One of the tumor-feeding arteries originated from the renal artery, which could have easily been overlooked by another surgeon.

Even if the surgeon was serious, responsible and finally managed to locate the artery, both patient and surgeon would have been exposed to significantly more radiation over time.

This patient was really lucky to have been chosen by Mu Tao.

It was incredibly important to learn and promote new technologies. Had it not been for the livestream broadcast by Montreal General Hospital in Canada, there was no way he would have suspected the origin of this tumor-feeding vessel.

He put on his lead apron and finished scrubbing up.

When Mu Tao returned to the interventional radiology suite with a steady gait, the doctor had already applied surgical drape on the operating site and was waiting for him to perform an arterial cannulation.

Mu Tao knew that all surgeries would be broadcast to the surgical demonstration classroom. Every operation would occupy a small section of the screen, and if anyone wished to watch a particular surgery in detail, each could be zoomed in on for the professors to study and evaluate.

He would definitely be the focus of discussion today. That was beyond question.

Mu Tao stood in front of the operating table, unhurried.

Pursuing speed would make him fall behind dramatically.

After calming his thoughts, he checked the patient’s name and read the imaging films on the radiographic film viewer while recalling the 3D image reconstruction of the 64-slice CT films.

This patient’s condition was considerably tricky as the tumor-feeding blood vessel branched from the renal artery. Without the 3D image reconstruction of the 64-slice CT scan, the surgery would have taken at least three hours for him to complete.

Now, he only needed a little over half an hour to finish it.

Mu Tao quickly recalled and extrapolated the patient’s blood vessel network for surgery before confidently picking up an arterial cannulation needle.

A flashback of blood came at the first prick.

The introducer sheath was then inserted. Following the insertion of the guidewire, Mu Tao estimated its location and turned on the imaging system at the perfect moment.

Instead of blindly superselecting every artery to locate the tumor feeding vessel, he specifically superselected, embolized and created an angiographic image of the hepatic artery before moving on to the renal artery.

Sure enough, a branch of the renal artery was directly connected to the liver. Although the vessel had many twists and turns, he could successfully superselect it as long as he was careful and attentive.

‘The professors in the surgical demonstration classroom must be flabbergasted by now.’ The thought greatly exhilarated Mu Tao.

He was delighted and proud to be able to perform the surgery so smoothly.

It was all because he had already figured out the origin of the tumor-feeding vessel. Perhaps the professors were complimenting him now that the surgery was over.

However, this was just the beginning. The surgery had taken Mu Tao only a little over half an hour.

He went to take a break while the other doctor compressed the puncture site for hemostasis.

The others had not come down yet, so perhaps he was already in the lead in terms of time.

A faster surgery despite the greater difficulty. Mu Tao believed he was the best among all other participants.

He sat on a chair in the operator’s console room and closed his eyes to rest.

This was just the beginning! He had to impress all the professors.

The second surgery…

The third surgery…

Everything was smooth sailing. Mu Tao used only two hours and fifteen minutes to complete the interventional radiological treatment of three patients whom he had chosen in advance.

Mu Tao gave himself a thumbs up for a job well done. It was not arrogance but the self-confidence of an excellent doctor.

The confidence of a surgeon who had mastered a core technology!

“Master Mu, get some rest. I’ve gained knowledge from the beautiful surgeries you’ve performed,” said the doctor assigned to be Mu Tao’s assistant.

“Oh, please don’t address me as ‘master’. Just Brother Mu is fine,” replied Mu Tao with a smile.

“Your proficiency in surgery is much superior to most professors, so you’re indeed worthy of the title ‘master’,” insisted the doctor.

Mu Tao could feel the sincere admiration in the doctor’s compliments.

However, he merely continued to smile faintly with a tinge of pride.

The doctor’s limited knowledge merely allowed him to recognize that Mu Tao was skillful without realizing the true highlight of the surgeries.

“You’ll reach my level one day if you study hard,” Mu Tao encouraged him.

“Okay, I will.” The doctor nodded seriously.

Mu Tao removed his lead apron, revealing his own surgical attire completely drenched in sweat.

It was difficult to perform such a delicate task while wearing an armor-like lead apron that weighed a few kilograms, even for Mu Tao, who was in his late thirties.

Unlike in Shenzhen Economic Development Zone People’s Hospital where Mu Tao would shower after surgery,

He went directly to the surgical demonstration classroom in his sweat-soaked surgical attire.

‘The professors must be all over my surgical technique now.’ The thought put a smile on Mu Tao’s face.

Unlike a fifteen-minute operation in some hospital where the catheter was not properly inserted into the hepatic artery and the surgery rashly ended with an irresponsible infusion of chemotherapy drugs, Mu Tao had actually taken a long time to complete his surgeries.

However, the embolization had been done perfectly, and he was even confident enough to assume that he had performed every procedure almost flawlessly.

Close to perfection!

Mu Tao was convinced that even Old Wu would be unable to perform the operation as smoothly as he did.

Not that Old Wu’s skill was inferior to his, but a geriatric in his sixties would certainly have trouble performing such a surgery in a heavy lead apron.

Many elderly people would experience backache and muscle soreness after carrying a bag of rice weighing between fifteen to twenty kilograms, let alone a lead apron in interventional radiology.

The golden age of general surgeons was between thirty to sixty years old, but interventional radiologists were only able to perform surgery in their peak physical state between the age of thirty-five to forty-five.

This was possible only if one was accepted as a disciple and personally taught by a well-reputed master at the age of thirty-five.

Most specialized interventional radiologists in the country had trouble achieving greater heights past their golden age.

Just like Mu Tao had imagined, the professors were staring unblinkingly at the screen with a surgery being played out on it.

However…

It was somewhat different from what he had initially anticipated…

It was not a replay of his surgery, but an ongoing operation!