Dr. James Kildare finds competition for the affections of nurse Mary Lamont in the person of wealthy brain surgeon Dr. Gregory Lane. Kildare has not proposed to Mary because of his poor financial situation as an intern. Kildare's mentor, Dr. Leonard Gillespie, is informed that Paul Messenger, whose daughter Kildare cured in ''The Secret of Dr. Kildare'', has arranged for Kildare to be offered a prestigious, lucrative position with the Messenger Institute. In the meantime Kildare has arranged for his inspiring but crusty mentor to see a oncology about the melanoma Gillespie is battling.