Pneumonia

Pneumonia sharply worsens Richard Flynn’s already grave illness in the days before Peter Katz visits his partner, Danna Olsen. It turns a period of apparent response to chemotherapy into an abrupt decline, leaves Flynn unable to answer questions about his missing manuscript, and precedes his death five days later, though the account does not identify pneumonia as the sole cause of death.

Diagnosis and Course

Flynn had been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer the previous year. Because the disease was already in its third stage, surgery was not possible, and he began chemotherapy. For a time, he responded positively to treatment. Two weeks before Olsen described his condition to Katz, however, he contracted pneumonia and deteriorated abruptly. His doctors held out little hope for him.

Hospitalization and Consequences

Flynn had been admitted to All Saints Hospital five days before Katz’s visit. When Olsen arrived there on the day she spoke with Katz, Flynn was already unconscious under sedation; shortly afterward, he slipped into a coma. His condition prevented her from asking where he had kept the manuscript Katz was seeking. Five days after the visit, Olsen called Katz to tell him that Flynn had died. The narrative thus connects pneumonia not only to a rapid decline in Flynn’s health but also to the loss of a final opportunity to question him about the manuscript.