If the infarction was five years before the Pilot (2004), that would put it in 1999.
I don't remember which episode (possibly You don't Want To Know in connection with Thirteen's possibly Huntington's?), but I remember a discussion taking place at some point about doctors thinking they can't get sick. Maybe House had a similar attitude until it got so bad that he had to start accepting that it might be something serious. He also could have been so distracted by the pain that he couldn't think straight. We've seen that happen before, too (Finding Judas).
From the Known Un thread:
Take "Three Stories," in which she appeared to (a) already be dean -- at 29? -- and (b) not know House. (OK, one-night stand, a decade or more ago, it's possible she forgot, but how do you forget a guy with a name like Gregory House -- we're not talking John Smith or Steve Brown here -- who is supposedly "a legend" at your school?)
A -- we only know she was taking over his case, not that she was dean. She may have been head of a department and one of the interns who reported to her screwed things up from the start.
B -- No one's name was ever used (with the exception when House yelled out "not her real name") to keep everyone's identity secret. So not getting into Cuddy and House's history or having them call each other by name keeps with that non-disclosure element that is common practice in describing past cases. (Besides, there were bigger issues at the time than catching up with old flames.)
And C -- I have no problems just shrugging and going with the reality that in the first season they were still developing some of the background intricacies. And regardless, there's nothing in the dialogue that disputes the additional canon. It's not as if either House or Cuddy said: "Hello stranger, I have never met before ..."
And D -- one of the ongoing debates about Three Stories is whether Cuddy was actually involved in House's care or if she is merely a stand-in for "doctor in charge" in House's memory.
While both could be true, I've always leaned toward "D" and the revelations in Known Un pushes me further into that camp.
One of the many beautiful elements of the superbly crafted season six finale "Help Me" was the way that the climactic scene underground in which House persuaded Hannah to amputate her leg contained so many call backs to the themes and dialogue of "Three Stories."
Particularly poignant was House using Stacy's words, "It just a leg," as his final argument to Hannah. Where he had rejected Stacy's identical plea in his own case, he used it precisely and to opposite effect with Hannah. I remember that Stacy asked House what he would do if he found his patient in a similar situation. He said he would let the patient make up his own mind. Stacy said, no you wouldn't. You would browbeat him into seeing it your way until he gave in and went for the amputation.
It turned out that Stacy's reading of House was partially correct. Rather than browbeating Hannah, however, House used the more powerful tools of self-examination and confession to convince Hannah of the choice he hoped she would make. In that moment of revelation and regret, House put into action the hard-won lessons he had learned over the the past six years.
Equally powerful was the fact that Cuddy was a vitally interested witness to both amputation discussions. These two momentous and heartbreaking medical debates bookended a turbulent chapter in her decades-long relationship with House.
It turned out that Stacy's reading of House was partially correct. Rather than browbeating Hannah, however, House used the more powerful tools of self-examination and confession to convince Hannah of the choice he hoped she would make. In that moment of revelation and regret, House put into action the hard-won lessons he had learned over the the past six years.
I have to disagree with this part of your analysis. House not only didn't browbeat Hanna, he supported her decision and browbeat the rescue team into allocating additional resources to get Hanna out without the amputation (advocating for my patient.)
Stacy tried to convince House to get his leg amputated from the beginning and she authorized the surgery because there was a strong possibility that the treatment he wanted might kill him. House did not tell Hanna to have the amputation until there was a certainty that she would die without it.
We have seen House treat people without their permission. We have seen him tell people they're idiots for not agreeing to the treatment he wants. We've seen him change tactics and try to find a different way to convince a patient to follow his course of action. But, starting with the pilot, I'd be hard-pressed to come up with any example other than DNR of House refusing to accept a patient's informed decision to refuse treatment. (ETA: And in DNR he felt the patient wasn't making an informed decision.)
I have to disagree with this part of your analysis. House not only didn't browbeat Hanna, he supported her decision and browbeat the rescue team into allocating additional resources to get Hanna out without the amputation (advocating for my patient.)
Stacy tried to convince House to get his leg amputated from the beginning and she authorized the surgery because there was a strong possibility that the treatment he wanted might kill him.
That's an excellent point.
I also noticed the contrast between Cuddy's responses.
In "Three Stories," we see her trying to talk House out of his treatment plan ( "The post-operative pain alone ...") and mentioning the "middle ground" option to Stacy. She agrees to induce the coma knowing that the likely result will be that the patient's wishes and judgment will be overridden. She lets Stacy take the blame & credit ("You're probably saving his life."/"He won't see it that way.")
In "Help Me," though, she tells the rescue captain " is a jerk. But it's what the patient wants." She doesn't second-guess House or Hanna until time has run out and the patient is at risk of death. She takes a strong stand at that point, and she's willing to deal with the fallout ("I am going to go talk that woman into letting me cut her leg off") but she doesn't pull rank, send House home, or try to do an end run around his authority. She ultimately lets him take the responsibility for persuading Hanna to have the amputation, and trusts him to deal with the procedure and all of its consequences. She's much stronger, much more responsible, this time, and ultimately, it's a much more respectful and trusting dynamic.
Cuddy actually does start to bring up the "middle ground" option to House prior to the first surgery, but he immediately dismissed it before she finished her statement.
Cuddy: We have to do the surgery. The necrotic tissue has to be removed. If there’s too much –
House: I don’t care what you find.
Cuddy: It may become necessary in order to save your life.
She explains it more fully to Stacy (and the audience, of course) who doesn't know medicine like House does, but she begins by talking about removing tissue/muscle, not the leg.
I' rewatching this. At the beginning, when Stacy says she's missed him and he looks away when he asks if that's why she's there -- I miss that. I don't think he avoids eye contact any more when the answer really matters to him.
I wonder if that's because he's become better at hiding his feelings or if fewer things matter that much to him any longer.
ETA: He's also less likely to smile to himself when someone zings him.
