King of Organs (1)

I returned to the hospital.

Putting what had happened in New York behind me, I found Palo Alto at Stanford far more peaceful—and the weather much better—than bustling New York.

Compared with a sprawling city that was so hard to get around.

As always, the wards at Stanford were bustling. First, I had to catch up on the patients.

I dropped into a seat at the nurses' station.

A lot had changed among the patients during the few days I was in New York. Some had gotten worse, while a few had improved.

The patient with pseudomembranous colitis I'd been seeing had been discharged, fully recovered... That's good.

This man had multiple myeloma and had developed tiny fractures in his legs. That man's heart had worsened, so he had started taking warfarin.

I quickly skimmed the medical records to see whether any prescriptions needed changing or anything needed further thought.

Was there a new disease, or a diagnosis whose treatment was still unknown in the 1970s...