The main cause of Cushing’s syndrome is a dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, which leads to the adrenal cortex secreting excessive glucocorticoids, resulting in a series of complications.
Qin Jiang looked at Gan Rui and said, “Just look at your current physique—moon face, buffalo hump, and central obesity. These are all classic signs of Cushing’s syndrome.”
Gan Rui stubbornly retorted, “Dr. Qin, I think I’m just a little overweight. At worst, I’ll go on a diet. It can’t be that serious, right?”
Even now, Gan Rui still refused to believe he had Cushing’s syndrome.
After all, at his age, gaining weight was perfectly normal.
Who in their thirties doesn’t have a beer belly?
Seeing that Gan Rui wasn’t convinced, Qin Jiang continued, “Other people’s weight gain might be caused by overwork, irregular eating habits, or similar factors.”
“But your obesity is definitely a complication of Cushing’s syndrome.”
“According to your test results, you also have high blood pressure, don’t you?”
Gan Rui let out a dismissive, smug laugh.
“So what if I’m overweight and have high blood pressure? That makes perfect sense to me.”
“Doc, just tell me what’s really wrong with me. There’s no need to make up some syndrome to scare me. I won’t short you a single cent on the medical fees, as long as you treat me properly.”
Gan Rui’s attitude rubbed the live-stream viewers the wrong way.
“What’s this guy’s deal? Wasn’t he just begging a woman for money a minute ago? And now he’s acting like he’s loaded—that’s ridiculous.”
“I work in a hospital, and honestly, we run into people like this all the time. No matter what the doctor tells them, they act like they know more than you do—including how their illness started and how it should be treated.”
“I don’t get it. If they think they know better than the doctor, why are they even coming in for treatment?”
“Maybe it’s the only way they can feel smart and superior.”
Without a doubt, Gan Rui fit that description perfectly.
Earlier, Qin Jiang had interrupted him several times and told him that his so-called business was a sham, which had already left a bad taste in Gan Rui’s mouth.
Now Qin Jiang was suddenly bringing up a condition Gan Rui had never even heard of—of course he’d be even more convinced that Qin Jiang had some hidden agenda.
Seeing Gan Rui still being so stubborn, Qin Jiang sneered and said, “Oh, really? Then does obesity cause osteoporosis?”
“Since you know so much, why don’t you explain to me why a young man like you has osteoporosis in the first place?”
Gan Rui was completely stumped.
How was he supposed to know that? If he did, he wouldn’t even be here!
Qin Jiang continued, “Lift up your shirt and let me see your stomach.”
Though Gan Rui had no idea what Qin Jiang was up to, he reluctantly did as he was told.
There, on his plump belly, were clusters of purplish skin streaks, looking a lot like the stretch marks women get after pregnancy.
Qin Jiang pointed at those purple streaks and asked, “Now, why don’t you tell me—where did these purple marks come from?”
Gan Rui opened his mouth, but no explanation came out.
After all, aside from being stubborn, his medical knowledge was nowhere near Qin Jiang’s level.
“Not talking now? You sure had a lot to say a moment ago.”
Seeing Qin Jiang getting upset, Wei Lan quickly stepped in to smooth things over.
“Dr. Qin, please don’t be angry. My boyfriend has always had this terrible habit—he acts like he knows everything when he actually understands nothing.”
“Dr. Qin, you’re a bigger person than that. Please don’t take it to heart.”
It had to be said—Gan Rui must have done something right in a past life to end up with a woman as wonderful as Wei Lan.
“Fine, for your girlfriend’s sake, I’ll continue treating you. Otherwise, I’d have thrown you out by now.”
Bad temper?
Qin Jiang’s temper was even worse.
If it weren’t for his commitment to the healer’s creed, he would’ve already told someone as deep in the mire as Gan Rui to get lost.
Qin Jiang pointed at the purplish streaks on Gan Rui’s belly and said, “This is another complication caused by Cushing’s syndrome. It’s called protein metabolism disorder.”
“In clinical terms, it presents exactly like this—a dark, reddish complexion and thinning skin where we can clearly see the subcutaneous capillaries, which appear as those purple marks.”
“These purple streaks usually show up on the abdomen, inner thighs, buttocks, and similar areas. The root cause is excessive protein breakdown, which leads to ruptured elastic fibers in the skin, resulting in what you see now.”
Qin Jiang’s thorough explanation finally convinced Gan Rui.
Now that’s what you call professional!
Generally speaking, thinning skin like this can be caused by many things—pregnancy and childbirth, for instance, or extreme weight loss.
But purple streaks appearing out of nowhere? That was highly unusual.
By now, Gan Rui had accepted what Qin Jiang was saying—he really did have Cushing’s syndrome.
But before he could even ask how to treat it,
Qin Jiang said calmly, “Things haven’t been going too well in the bedroom lately, have they?”
“Huh?”
Qin Jiang’s sudden question completely caught Gan Rui off guard.
“Dr. Qin, what do you mean by ‘not going too well’?”
Qin Jiang shot him a glance.
“What do you think I mean? Haven’t you noticed it yourself?”
Gan Rui stammered, unable to get a word out for a long while.
Lately, he had indeed been experiencing some issues in that department. But out of male pride, he’d been telling Wei Lan that it was just work stress affecting his performance.
Now that Qin Jiang had called him out on it so bluntly, Gan Rui felt more than a little humiliated.
But then it hit him.
He looked up at Qin Jiang, eyes gleaming.
“Dr. Qin, are you saying that my… problem… is also caused by this disease?”
Qin Jiang nodded.
“Significant gonadal dysfunction is indeed one of the complications of this condition. Depending on the patient’s constitution, the severity varies from person to person.”
“But based on all your test data, your case is by far the most severe.”
Gan Rui asked nervously, “So… can this disease be cured?”
He didn’t really care much about the other symptoms—being overweight and such didn’t affect his daily life.
But gonadal dysfunction? That was a whole different story.
If that couldn’t be fixed, it would directly impact his quality of life and happiness.
Qin Jiang sneered and said, “Like I told you—if you don’t get treated promptly, you’ll be spending the rest of your life in a hospital bed.”
“I listed so many complications earlier, and you didn’t bat an eye. But this one gets your attention, huh?”
Gan Rui said with an awkward laugh, “Dr. Qin, you’ve got it all wrong. What I mean is, if you’re sick, you need treatment—of course I want to get everything cured!”
