S01.E05: Point Three Percent

[AmandaPanda]

Quote

While in the exam area of St. Bonaventure Hospital, Dr. Shaun Murphy encounters a young patient who looks eerily similar to his deceased brother, Steve. After discovering his parents have hidden his diagnosis from him, Shaun struggles to understand why he doesn't deserve to hear the truth about his own health. Meanwhile, the team can't figure out what keeps triggering their patients' increasingly severe allergic reactions and races to find the cause before the next one kills another patient.

[Annber03]

Okay, so that was an incredibly bittersweet ending. Thank goodness we didn't have to see the kid actually die, at least.

(On that note, ABC, I'm more than fine with not having to see that bunny scene in the "previously on" segments again, thanks. )

LOL at the "teleportation" conversation, as well as Shaun and the kid discussing him giving Lea batteries :p. 

[statsgirl]

I never want to see that bunny scene again.  It's cruel and unusual punishment at this point.

That kid is a really good actor.

If Shaun hadn't done the test and it wasn't cancer, wouldn't they have known that eventually?  When he didn't die.

[tennisgurl]

*sniffle* I didn't see that ending coming, I thought for sure the kid would be alright. So very bittersweet, heavy on the bitter. 

Were the parents never going to tell the kid until he was so sick he couldn't leave the hospital? Would they keep telling him he just had a cold while he was on his death bed? 

Shaun's teleportation joke made me smile though. 

[Amethyst]

Shaun had to lose a patient eventually.  I don't know hospital protocol, but I'm surprised Glassman didn't pull Shaun off the case once he saw how attached he had become to Evan.  Even Dr. Douche could see that Shaun was obsessed.  Claire was kind of on the fringe and didn't have much to do, she could have taken Shaun's place.

Glassman was right, false hope is cruel.  I felt bad for the parents, but worse for Evan himself.  Clever as he was, he was still a kid who wasn't ready to die.

The father/son thing kinda veered to to the right.  I though the son's secret would be that he was the cause of the whole thing.  Like he accidentally mailed a souvenir that contained the parasites which made his father so sick.  Not really getting how the failed romance paralleled his father's disappointment, but whatever.  At least they made up and the surgery was interesting to watch.

Kalu is interesting.  He wants to be closer to Claire, but he keeps his patients at arms' length.

Was that Penny from Gray's Anatomy playing the mom?  

[Robert Lynch]

The kid actor playing both the patient and Shaun's brother looked eerily similar to a young Ethan Hawke. 

[Ohmo]

False hope may be cruel, but so is flat out lying to your kid.  I wanted Evan to have whatever Shaun thought he had as a way to tell Evan's parents to shove it.  I honestly could not stand them, and I thought they were keeping the truth from Evan more for their own benefit rather than his.  He had to find out from the Internet, for crying out loud.  I could understand not telling a very young child, but Evan was old enough to know what was happening.  I found what his parents were doing to be as cruel (or even more cruel) than what they were upset about what Shaun did.

I'm sad to have lost Evan as a character, but I'm also sorry that we've lost him as a recurring character with a chronic illness.  I thought Evan and Shaun were good for each other.  I think each gained something from interacting with the other, and it would have been nice to not have that be a one-time thing.

[izabella]

35 minutes ago, Amethyst said:

Was that Penny from Gray's Anatomy playing the mom?  

Yes, that was her!

Those parents were baffling.  I guess they thought they were protecting him so he wouldn't fear what was coming?  They weren't fully fleshed out.   Neither were the dad and son.  But the boy and Shaun were great together.

[MakeMeLaugh]

So interesting to see a “child” actor (Dylan Kingwell) who is soooo good playing against Freddie Highmore, who was soooo good as a child actor (and imo is one of the best actors today). I told Mr MML that of course Show had to bring the actor back—bet they wish they hadn’t killed him off as Shaun’s brother. It will be fun to see Dylan’s career progress.

A sad episode—dead mom, prodigal son, cancer child, and then To Kill a Mockingbird and Boo Radley. Lots of sniffles in our house.

Glad though that the plot veered off the wrong diagnosis course. Enough with miracle re-diagnoses.

I thought this was the best episode yet in terms of the cast working believably together—they have meshed for me. 

Edited October 24, 2017 by MakeMeLaugh

[Blue Plastic]

The cancer boy's parents were obnoxious and selfish.  Yes, they loved their kid and were heartbroken about his diagnosis, but they were also being delusional and cruel to try to keep the cancer a secret from him.  That was more for their comfort than his, IMO.  What were they planning on doing when the kid was at death's door and he still didn't know what he had?

Didn't care for the conceit that cancer boy just HAPPENS to look EXACTLY LIKE Shaun's dead brother.  Wow!  Not just closely resembles but exactly like!  What a coincidence!  I'm sure it was because that child actor is really good and they wanted to give him some extra screen time instead of just flashbacks, but what are they going to do?  Bring out yet another gravely ill child who looks exactly like Shaun's dead brother every time they run out of other plots?

Shaun gets things wrong a lot.  Is his behavior getting worse?

[steelyis]

I was dying at Evan's, "That's a beautiful story," line.

 

2 hours ago, MakeMeLaugh said:

I told Mr MML that of course Show had to bring the actor back—bet they wish they hadn’t killed him off as Shaun’s brother. It will be fun to see Dylan’s career progress.

 

Right? I knew from the moment they showed Steve's death it was a mistake to kill him off. Maybe they didn't fully grasp how talented Dylan is until it was too late?

Edited October 24, 2017 by steelyis

[possibilities]

2 hours ago, statsgirl said:

If Shaun hadn't done the test and it wasn't cancer, wouldn't they have known that eventually?  When he didn't die.

I'm not sure, but I think the implication was that the alternative diagnosis was treatable, not that it wouldn't kill him if left untreated.

The rest of the hospital staff didn't all act like hateful pieces of shit this week, either, so that was an improvement.

I'm going to be honest. I find Shaun delightful. I wish more people acted like him.

Loved this: What's 4 hours of false hope vs saving a life?

I agree they need to stop showing the bunny killing.

[Bobbin]

31 minutes ago, MakeMeLaugh said:

So interesting to see a “child” actor (Dylan Kingwell) who is soooo good playing against Freddie Highmore, who was soooo good as a child actor (and imo is one of the best actors today). I told Mr MML that of course Show had to bring the actor back—bet they wish they hadn’t killed him off as Shaun’s brother. It will be fun to see Dylan’s career progress.

Brother Steve Murphy has been a recurring character in backstory flashbacks in every episode. I expect, and hope, that Dylan Kingwell will continue to make such appearances, at least throughout this first season. It was fitting that even though both parts were played by the same actor, Shaun would declare that they weren't alike because one had slightly shorter hair.

Children being better prepared to face their own impending death than their parents is a TV drama trope, but also very often true IRL.

Evan could have defended Shaun better to his parents by emphasizing that he had known for some time that he had an untreatable cancer, that Shaun had only confirmed it. However, Shaun admitting to Evan what the bone biopsy was really for made it inevitable that Evan would excitedly blurt it out to his parents.

It was a sweet twist on the benevolent lie when Evan comforted his parents with the belief that when he died he would be with his deceased family members -- after telling Shaun that he didn't believe in an afterlife, but he was OK with that.

Autistic or not, Shaun could do with a hug.

[hoosiermom]

So glad I stuck with this show because I look forward to it every week. So nice to see such a different type of doctor/resident who isn’t an asshole and searches for a diagnosis for the betterment of the patient and not so much for the glory. I too love that the cast is starting to mesh. Wish I didn’t cry every week but this show is worth it.

[luna1122]

I really don't get the point of the boy looking EXACTLY like Steve. I mean, I get wanting to use the kid actor, cuz he's beautiful and talented (and so much more engaging when he talks than when he was a creepy little silent  ghost zombie kid on The Returned.) But for him to look so exactly like him that Dr. Glassman noticed it immediately (despite Steve having been dead for a long time), and to be the same age as when Steve died...yeah, too much of a trite, tortured coincidence with no pay off to it all. And then kill him off too....ugh, whatever.

The kid's dad was Micheal Muhney! I'm still not sure the details of why he got summarily fired from Young and the Restless, and it's certainly possible he's a sexually harrassing douchebag, but I don't know. I always loved him, even when I hated him on Veronica Mars, and he'll always be Sherriff Don Lamb to me.

I had that exact copy of To Kill A Mockingbird when I was growing up.

[DearEvette]

Wait... was that a small, little , movement of Melendez's lips when Shaun said he used a teleportation device?  I think it was!

I have to agree that kid who plays Shaun's brother in the flashbacks and this week's patient of the week, has charisma and charm to burn.  I also agree with @Ohmo that is is a shame we will lose him as a recurring character because it might have been nice to see him play off Shaun in the present day.  The two had such great on screen chemistry.  On the other hand, though, I am glad Shaun's .3 percent against all odds diagnosis didn't prove to be true.  Would have felt too unrealistic and manipulative, imo.

This was a good episode. 

[Pink-n-Green]

8 hours ago, MakeMeLaugh said:

So interesting to see a “child” actor (Dylan Kingwell) who is soooo good playing against Freddie Highmore, who was soooo good as a child actor (and imo is one of the best actors today). I told Mr MML that of course Show had to bring the actor back—bet they wish they hadn’t killed him off as Shaun’s brother. It will be fun to see Dylan’s career progress.

A sad episode—dead mom, prodigal son, cancer child, and then To Kill a Mockingbird and Boo Radley. Lots of sniffles in our house.

Glad though that the plot veered off the wrong diagnosis course. Enough with miracle re-diagnoses.

I thought this was the best episode yet in terms of the cast working believably together—they have meshed for me. 

Yes, this was the first episode where I didn't want to fast forward through the other cast scenes to get to Shaun.

And I agree with you that Freddie is one of the best actors around.  He could scare the isht out of me in Bates Motel then make me want to give him a big ol' hug as Shaun.

[sonyab]

I am so disappointed that Shaun was wrong about the boy! :(

11 hours ago, Annber03 said:

(On that note, ABC, I'm more than fine with not having to see that bunny scene in the "previously on" segments again, thanks. )

Yeah it's awful!!! I had to turn away! I can't watch that scene anymore!

11 hours ago, Annber03 said:

LOL at the "teleportation" conversation, as well as Shaun and the kid discussing him giving Lea batteries :p. 

ROFL!

[Lady Calypso]

I was surprisingly ok that Shaun was wrong about the boy. I like competent doctors, but TV shows often make the doctors right more than wrong. Since Shaun is still learning, no matter how intelligent he is, he is bound to make mistakes here and there, especially earlier on. So, with him seeing the boy as his brother and actually being too close to the case in that way, I'm happy that he wasn't miraculously right. I like seeing flaws in my favourite characters, as long as they mean well. 

I'm also happy to be wrong about said boy being upset at Shaun after his false hope. 

First episode where I didn't hate any of the supporting characters either. 

I thought it was a good episode all around. 

[mortonsalt]

11 hours ago, steelyis said:

I was dying at Evan's, "That's a beautiful story," line.

 

 

Right? I knew from the moment they showed Steve's death it was a mistake to kill him off. Maybe they didn't fully grasp how talented Dylan is until it was too late?

 

I know in the first episode thread that I saw a few posters bring up the idea that they should have had Steve live. I especially liked the idea that someone had that he would be physically disabled after his fall. Then, the show could explore that dynamic between the two brothers. It might have been a better way to have inserted the younger actor more because as much as I'm not a fan of the flashbacks, Steve could have his set of flashbacks too. 

Plus, while I do want Shaun to grow and find love someday, I'm not ready for a Shaun and Lea relationship yet even though I suppose she'll be there to help Shaun out with "real world" stuff. If they hadn't killed off Steve that would have been something for him to do. 

[Annber03]

4 hours ago, DearEvette said:

Wait... was that a small, little , movement of Melendez's lips when Shaun said he used a teleportation device?  I think it was!

Yes :D! I felt a slight thawing at times from him throughout as well. I liked the moments when he was talking to Shaun about Evan-yeah, he was still his usual blunt self, but you could see a hint of sympathy in his expression, too. He clearly wanted to believe Shaun could be right about how to save the kid. But I understand him wanting to stay realistic, too, especially since, in this case, he would've been right to think that way.

3 hours ago, Pink-n-Green said:

And I agree with you that Freddie is one of the best actors around.  He could scare the isht out of me in Bates Motel then make me want to give him a big ol' hug as Shaun.

This :). Heck, even when he was playing Norman Bates, he still managed to make my heart break for that character sometimes, too!

[Bobbin]

From sites like IMDB, it appears that Dylan Kingwell (Steve/Evan) is juggling a number of commitments through next year, plus school. It may be that he was only available for this ep and the brief flashbacks (all shot at once, maybe). Here's hoping that an extended flashback ep is a possibility later on -- or an ep like "Psych!'" when Shawn imagined a present-day convo with his younger self (but not "The Pretender's" Jarod clone arc).

Creative and subtle: an autistic lead character who manages to influence each of the other characters to grow and mature emotionally. Healing comes in many forms. And not all of the patients are in beds. Deep.

Edited October 24, 2017 by Bobbin
Influence is a better word.

[SnarkyTart]

After not liking last week's episode at all, this was my favorite episode yet.  The chemistry between Highmore and Kingwell was off the chain, and their dialogue was quite well crafted.  Since  Evan has another 3-4 months to live and will probably be in the hospital A LOT  in the coming weeks, maybe the show can show Sean and Evan continuing to have deep conversations about the meaning of life, mortality, and relationships, all sprinkled liberally with the fun sense of play and sarcasm between them.  It would be terrific for the continuing development of Highmore's character. 

[Fable]

What I enjoyed most about this episode was Shaun’s attempt at humor or least an attempt to understand humor and respond to it. 

[BestNShow]

This show has been pretty steady. Some of it is a little too TV fantasy, but overall, it's got a solid footing in reality. Highmore is remarkable in his portrayal as being autistic. Monday's show had some good drama. Freddie continues to impress. I really enjoyed seeing Michael Muhney as the boy's father. He we as terrific on VERONICA MARS as the badass Sheriff Don Lamb. His work on the soap YOUNG & RESTLESS elevated the usually mundane soap trash. He never fails to put it out there. Overall, good show.

 

Edited October 30, 2017 by BestNShow
spelling error.

[rwlevin]

Several things. First, Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis IS cancer. It's a more treatable type of cancer, but it's still cancer and it will kill if not treated in time. I've had two patients with it and it was a big topic when studying for the boards. Second, did I miss something? Why wasn't Evan's cancer treatable? Usually osteosarcoma is very treatable. You amputate the leg with the lesion and then you use chemo and radiation to kill all the metastases. Ewing sarcoma is much worse and it's also the one with metastases to the chest. For a kid who's been sick for around 8 months without treatment, he looked quite healthy, brittle bones and PE non-withstanding. Third, obtaining a biopsy without a patient's (or in this case, parent's) permission is assault. Shaun should have been at best case, fired, and at worst, arrested. Finally, this story was done before on Scrubs with the parents trying to keep their child in the dark about his cancer diagnosis and the doctor (Dr. Cox) choosing to go against the parents' wishes telling by telling him.

 

Actually, the parasite case was done before on House. It was their pilot episode.

 

Oh, and add orthopedic surgeon to the mounting list of subspecialties Dr. Melendez has, along with pediatric oncologist.

Edited October 25, 2017 by rwlevin

[AstaCharles]

Can "borrowed my batteries" ( or whatever Shaun said to the kid about Leah) be the new " Netflix and chill" ?

Edited October 25, 2017 by AstaCharles

[UGAmp]

I’m really enjoying this show. My mom watched the Korean version and was OBSESSED with it... I seriously hesitated to tell her I was watching the American version because she talked about it endlessly and I don’t need to relive those conversations. 

I echo everyone’s sentiments above. Best episode so far. Freddie is sensational and just adorable. The younger brother actor is outstanding. But I think my favorite moment tonight was Shaun’s “The “no biggie” gave me away” to Glassman. I was cracking up. 

My only qualm with this show is the surgeries. Bleh! The brain cyst was simultaneously fascinating and absolutely disgusting. I watched through my fingers. It was also nice to see Glassman be a surgeon and not just a board member and Shaun’s confidant. More of that please!

[Phoebe70]

Another strong episode.  I loved the interaction with Shaun and the boy.

Based on Shaun talking about Leah to the boy, I'm guessing there will be some type of romantic relationship in the future.  Please, NO.

Am I imagining it, or did Shaun sound even more robotic this episode?

[statsgirl]

I agree that the child actor is very good and they should have him on more.  But it makes no sense to me that he looks exactly like Shaun's brother. That's stretching credibility too far.

I'm still in this for Highmore but I'm finding the writing and show running to be less than I was hoping for.

On 10/24/2017 at 2:18 AM, Bobbin said:

Autistic or not, Shaun could do with a hug.

I don't get the conceit that Shaun doesn't like to be hugged. Temple Grandin invented a machine that gives hugs for herself.

[MsNewsradio]

39 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

I don't get the conceit that Shaun doesn't like to be hugged. Temple Grandin invented a machine that gives hugs for herself.

Some autistics like being touched. Some don't. Some like being touched only if it's deep pressure touch (like Temple Grandin and her hugging machine), and some only like it if it's light touch. Some are fine being touched if they are the ones initiating or can anticipate that it's coming, but can't deal with it otherwise (such as if they are approached from behind in a hug). Really depends on the person's individual sensory issues and if they are overall sensory avoidant or sensory seeking.

The only evidence I've seen so far that he doesn't want to be touched (and someone please correct me if there's been other instances, as I frankly have to watch episodes of this while doing something else or I get bothered by all the inconsistencies) is the (second?) episode with the girl whose house he went to when he realized she was really sick - her parents hugged him in gratitude at the hospital and he tensed up a bit as they did so (which could honestly be chalked up to what I said before about not having anticipated it, rather than not liking being hugged at all). 

If they are going to push Leah and Shaun as a possible romantic pairing, please be later in the series...right now I don't trust the writers at all to handle that with the necessary nuance. 

I liked Shaun's humor in this episode. People act like we can't use sarcasm, or have senses of humor - nice to see that refuted even a little. Could have done without the over-explanation of it, but one step at a time I guess.

Also for God's sake, take the rabbit out of the episode recaps. Enough already.

[aemom]

45 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

I don't get the conceit that Shaun doesn't like to be hugged. Temple Grandin invented a machine that gives hugs for herself.

Truthfully,  autistic people are just like neuro-typical people in that all people all have things that they like and don't like. Some autistic people respond well to hugs and pressure and others don't like it. Just like some neuro-typical people like hugs and others don't.

In terms of what characteristics autistic people have, the only one that you can really count on across the board is that they struggle socially.

[Blue Plastic]

I don't mind that Shaun gets stuff wrong.  Many shows of this type would have the protagonist shout, "I know what the problem is!' and turn out to be exactly right 9 times out of 10, even if it makes no sense.  It's just that he always seems to be saying, "I know what the problem is!" and he's often wrong.  I guess he was right that one time with the kidney thing in the first? second? episode.  That added onto the amazing coincidence of the cancer kid looking just like his dead brother.

[thuganomics85]

Yeah, seriously, "previously on" guys, you can lay off replaying the bunny killing any day now.

Surprised that Evan did end up having the untreatable cancer after-all, but I'm glad they went ahead and had Shaun be wrong, so he's not always right (sure, he's The Good Doctor, but not The Perfect Doctor!) and will save the day.  Mixed feelings on the false hope/lies thing.  Yeah, Shaun probably should have tried to sneak around and was naive to think there was really a chance considering the odds, but the parents keeping the diagnose from Evan felt wrong as well.  If anything, it really felt less like they wanted to protect him and more that they were too afraid to tell him the truth, which is selfish of them, so even though they were in the right on some levels to be mad, I didn't think they really had that much ground to stand on.  Although, realistically, either Glassman or Melendez should have pulled him off the case as soon as they saw how personal he was making it.  But that's TV for y'all!

The stuff with the father/son was by the numbers, but I guess it was fun to see Glassman get to do surgery and Jared realize that while he should get to over-personal with the patients like Shaun admittedly did, it doesn't hurt to maybe talk with them every now and then, and not act like an emotionless robot in scrubs. 

Glad that Shaun is attempting legit humor now and learning how to understand sarcasm.  Especially the teleportation stuff.  Even freaking Melendez of all people looked amused by that! 

So, besides the whole neighbor thing, I'm guessing Evan asking about what Claire means to Shaun means that will eventually become a thing as well.  It certainly is something I can see this show doing.

Probably the best episode yet but, as usual, even if the writing can be cheesy at times, Freddie Highmore's (and Dylan Kingwell this go around) acting is elevating the material.

[Guest]

My allergies were really acting up around the time the dying boy pretended to believe in the afterlife to comfort his parents.  

[MoreCoffeePlease]

When they do the opening credits and flash the text about this being based on a Korean show, I always get a little bit freaked out, as if we are being invaded or something. It is hard to describe, but it just seems so weird.

[Emma9]

Was there supposed to be a scene where they eventually found out that the older patient contracted the tapeworms from cleaning up after his dog? It seems bizarre that they showed her in the opening scene, then made a point of asking whether he'd been around any wolves or coyotes (???), then referred to the dog getting rawhides from some random source (I don't know about worms specifically, but rawhides are notorious for being contaminated with all kinds of crap if they're not a reputable brand).

[Driad]

"Wolves or coyotes" bothered me too. Coyotes live in suburbs and cities now.

Here is the NOS Magazine review of this episode. Other episodes are listed in the right column. http://nosmag.org/the-good-doctor-season-one-episode-five-point-three-percent/

Edited October 27, 2017 by Driad

[Cinephile54]

This has been the best episode of the show so far and the scene where Shaun reads to Evan was GORGEOUS.

Edited October 27, 2017 by Cinephile54
Remembered the young patient's name

[Pink-n-Green]

23 hours ago, MoreCoffeePlease said:

When they do the opening credits and flash the text about this being based on a Korean show, I always get a little bit freaked out, as if we are being invaded or something. It is hard to describe, but it just seems so weird.

LOL!!! Would you feel better if it specified a SOUTH Korean show? ;)

[Ohmo]

On 10/26/2017 at 9:15 AM, deaja said:

My allergies were really acting up around the time the dying boy pretended to believe in the afterlife to comfort his parents.  

Substitute the scene where Shaun asked Evan if he could read him something, told him it was short, and then read from To Kill a Mockingbird, and I think it's safe to assume that you and I have the same allergy.

[rmontro]

They still haven't let Shaun operate, have they?  It almost seems odd that he's a surgeon because his forte seems to be making diagnoses.  On House, they even made up a title for him so he could play that role, Chief of Diagnostics or whatever it was.  It was interesting to see Shaun fail here (guess wrong), I guess he really was too close to the case.

I know a family who has an autistic son and they don't like this show because they don't like the way he is portrayed.  I've actually encountered a lot of autistic people though, and they have a wide variety of personalities, just like anybody else.  I like the show.

[candall]

I thought the cystic father's son's teacher friend was going to be a man.  That whole case had a lot of loose ends.  "I went to the other side of the world and missed Mom's funeral by five weeks because I was afraid I couldn't run the store as well as you, Dad"--not the greatest wrap-up in the world.

As others have said, the non-Shaun parts of the show aren't nearly as good, but I'm glad they've branched out from the basic storyline that the other surgeons are shitty to Shaun and then have to eat their words when he's right.

I can see a lot of the House writers influence in this.   And the temperature dropped several degrees when Gregory House wasn't onscreen, too.

[Pink-n-Green]

On ‎10‎/‎24‎/‎2017 at 8:22 AM, luna1122 said:

 I always loved him, even when I hated him on Veronica Mars, and he'll always be Sherriff Don Lamb to me.

Sheriff Lamb!!!! Dang, he had looked familiar to me but I couldn't place him.  For some reason I though he'd been on Ally McBeal. 

I loved Veronica Mars.  Were you on TWOP when the people on the boards referred to the other cop in Neptune as "Officer Pornstache"?

[MartyQui]

On 10/24/2017 at 9:41 PM, rwlevin said:

Second, did I miss something? Why wasn't Evan's cancer treatable? Usually osteosarcoma is very treatable. You amputate the leg with the lesion and then you use chemo and radiation to kill all the metastases. Ewing sarcoma is much worse and it's also the one with metastases to the chest. For a kid who's been sick for around 8 months without treatment, he looked quite healthy, brittle bones and PE non-withstanding

Thank you!  This was driving me crazy the whole episode.  And someone with chest metastases was going to be in pain...were the parents giving him pain meds in his cereal?  I have to hand wave over Dr. Melendez, man of many specialties, or else I wouldn't be able to enjoy Freddie Highmore's performance so much.

[chocolatine]

I was on the fence about this show because of how one-dimensional the characters besides Shaun and Glassman are, but Freddie Highmore's performance won me over, and I'm now all in. I love that Shaun is trying to use humor and sarcasm even though it's not intuitive for him, and that Melendez and the other doctors are finally warming up to him.

I know I shouldn't expect too much realism from this show, but the "it may not be cancer" plot really bugged me. If the probability of two false positives is 0.3% (i.e. 0.003), then the probability of having one false positive is ~5.5% (square root of 0.003 is ~0.055). I'm not a medical professional, but that seems to be a very high false positive rate for such an important test. Shouldn't the lumbar puncture that Shaun was trying to perform also be part of the diagnostic protocol for that type of cancer, since the test itself isn't completely reliable? Or is that procedure so invasive and risky in its own right that doing the test twice is the safer option all things considered?