Dad’s death inspires son to specialise in cancer treatment

When Dr Kern Pemberton moved to Jamaica at age 18 to pursue his dreams of becoming a doctor, little did he know that tragedy would shape his path in unexpected ways.

When Pemberton left his homeland of Trinidad and Tobago to study at The University of the West Indies (UWI), he planned on acquiring his Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degrees, while pursing studies in music because he dreamt of being 'the singing doctor'. However, three years into his studies, his father succumbed to colon cancer at age 53. This devastating yet profound experience ignited a fierce passion within Pemberton, guiding him to specialise in radiation oncology.

"I wanted to understand more about what happened and I wanted to understand more about how I could contribute to cancer development in the future," Pemberton said. He said he also wanted to understand the background of cancer patients as well as help them and their families with the challenges of battling the disease.

"I really wanted to have that connection or be that person that can tell someone that it's going to be okay, because sometimes I remember when I wanted to be the person who was told that it was going to be okay," said Pemberton.

After completing studies at The UWI, Pemberton attended the University of Cape Town in South Africa and studied radiation and clinical oncology for four years, before returning to Jamaica, which has relatively few radiation oncologists.

"So it is a sort of developing field, a field that is in need because radiation has instilled itself as one of the pillars of treatment in cancers. So therefore, knowing that the area is underserved, knowing that the technology needs to be developed, I thought it was my obligation to come back and make sure I'm part of the development process," said Pemberton.

As a radiation oncologist, Pemberton, 33, treats cancer patients with rays to damage the DNA of cancer cells which prevents the cancer from spreading.

"Colloquially, what I tell patients is that it [radiation treatment] causes the cancer cells to sort of break up, so therefore the cancer cells will die off eventually and the tumour disappears. Sometimes we give it to areas where cancers were [located] just in case there are any tumour cells remaining that we can't see with the naked eye to get rid of such," Pemberton explained. He said this form of treatment is dependent on the type of cancer and its location in the body. He also told THE STAR that his focus is not eradicating the disease, but rather ensuring that his patients' quality of life is maintained or regained.

"Often you would find that a number of patients cannot be cured of their cancers. However, when they get to therapy, it's to help with things like pain, bleeding and discomfort. So therefore, it's not always about the tumour, it's about the person in front of us and that is what I really like about it," Pemberton explained. "It really gives me an opportunity to relate to patients, it gives me an opportunity see somebody come with a frown that turns into a smile."

He added that for him and other oncologists, working with cancer patients is its own form of therapy because of the many life lessons they teach.

"You get to see persons from different socio-economic backgrounds, you get to understand different challenges that persons may face, and it's not just the face value. There is always a story behind it," Pemberton explained, adding that the most powerful life lesson he's learnt from his patients is that he is not God and cannot predict every outcome.

"I often tell patients, even though you've been diagnosed with this sort of illness and someone tells you that you have a terminal illness, you cannot play God. You cannot predict what is going to happen. Therefore, every day we need to live our lives as if it's the last. We need to actually ensure that we treat persons with respect and we need to sort of appreciate that there is someone out there who determines what the final answer is," said Pemberton.

He advised those interested in pursuing a career in this field to ensure they do their research and have a passion for helping others and developing their country.