Many cancer patients do not want to disclose their illness openly. More than 10 years ago, I had treated a Hong Kong entrepreneur. He was suffering from colorectal cancer, chronic nephritis and uremia. He came to the hospital in Shenzhen where I was serving for examinations. I immediately persuaded him for treatment. He underwent hemodialysis, and when his renal function had improved, he had surgery done. He insisted to be discharged so that he could manage his business and he promised to come back for further treatment in a month’s time. He even wanted me not to tell his son of his illness. Of course, the consequences were imaginable. He passed away two months later. Whenever I recall the incidence, my heart aches.
Early 2005, a pharmacist fromNew Zealandcame to our hospital. She had breast cancer with lymph node metastasis. A hospital in Auckland wanted to remove her breast surgically (mastectomy) but the forty-six years old pharmacist who was still single refused breast surgery. She learnt of our hospital from the Internet. After she had been admitted into our hospital, she made several requests: First, we should keep it absolutely confidential and we must not leak any information regarding her having breast cancer. Second, she would not undergo surgery at all. Third, we must maintain a perfect external appearance of her breasts. We performed percutaneous cryoablation and axillary lymph node dissection and kept her breasts intact. May 2005, I was invited to give talks inNew Zealand. That lady pharmacist had completely recovered and she warmly showed me around. After I had ended my talk, she went to the podium on her own initiative to tell about her breast cancer and how she was given treatment inChina. She even opened her jacket to reveal her vest and bra-covered chest. She said, “My wish is to let people know that when one has breast cancer, there are other options available besides mastectomy.”