Chapter 9, Congenital Defect, Summary

The next morning Ender makes a list of everything he needs to know in order to speak the death of Marcao. On the list is the nature of Marcao's genetic disease that caused his death. Ender goes to the local doctor, and after having to threaten the man with the possibility of the revocation of the colonies Catholic license, Ender convinces the man to speak to him about Marcao. Marcao died of a disease in which many of the organs of the body, including the thyroid, the pituitary, the testes, and the liver are replaced with fat cells. The doctor insists that although it is common for the testes to be the first organ to go after puberty, that in Marcao's case they were one of the last since Marcao had six children. Ender suspects this is not true...