A Mysterious Illness With No Answers
Shreya, an X (formerly Twitter) user, recently posted about her mother’s long and painful struggle with a chronic cough that lasted over 18 months. During this period, she said they consulted top doctors, visited major hospitals both in and outside their city, and even tried alternative treatments like ayurveda and homeopathy.
But despite multiple tests and medications, no one could identify the underlying cause. Her mother’s health kept deteriorating, and eventually internal bleeding began—raising serious concerns. Doctors warned that if the condition continued, it could prove fatal within six months.
Desperate Turn to ChatGPT
Frustrated and fearful, Shreya turned to ChatGPT out of desperation. She typed out all her mother’s symptoms into the AI chatbot, hoping it might suggest something new. ChatGPT returned several possible causes, one of which stood out: a side effect of certain blood pressure medications. It even asked whether her mother’s prescription contained a specific ingredient known to trigger chronic cough and internal bleeding in some cases.
Surprised, Shreya checked her mother’s medication and found that it did, in fact, include the ingredient mentioned. She then took this information to her doctor, who reviewed the case again. This time, the doctor agreed with the AI’s suggestion and immediately changed her mother’s prescription.
Recovery and Relief
After switching the medication, Shreya’s mother began to show significant improvement. The cough reduced, and the internal complications eased. In her post, Shreya wrote that her mother was “finally healing,” and she credited ChatGPT with pointing them in the right direction. She also expressed gratitude to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, calling the technology a “great thing.”
Similar Cases of AI-Assisted Diagnosis
Shreya’s story isn’t the only one where ChatGPT has helped users make sense of baffling medical issues. In April 2025, People magazine reported that a 27-year-old woman in France, Marly Garnreiter, used the chatbot to investigate symptoms that had gone undiagnosed for months. ChatGPT suggested Hodgkin lymphoma — a suspicion later confirmed by medical tests.
Another story, reported by the New York Post, described how a U.S. mother of two received conflicting medical opinions, prompting her to ask ChatGPT for insights. The AI flagged Hashimoto’s disease, which led to further tests that confirmed thyroid cancer. On Reddit, a user even shared how ChatGPT identified a rare genetic mutation, MTHFR A1298C, that had gone undiagnosed by doctors for over a decade.
While stories like these show the potential of AI in assisting with health-related queries, medical professionals caution that tools like ChatGPT are not substitutes for clinical evaluation. AI models can sometimes generate incorrect or outdated responses. Doctors stress that such platforms should be viewed as supportive tools—useful for raising questions and exploring possibilities, but not for drawing conclusions on their own.