She definitely got my attention. She trained in Singapore, France, and England. I was blown away. With all her accomplishments and accolades, she is proof that gender should never be an issue and that success follows whatever you put your heart into. Our first Sage Hero, Dr. Catherine S. Teh, Hepatobiliary Pancreatic Surgeon extraordinaire.

Doc: Please introduce yourself?

Dr. Catherine Teh: I am a hepatopancreatobiliary (HPB) surgeon who specializes in liver cancer and pancreatic cancer which is now very common. I am very much into liver cirrhosis as well and liver transplant is my passion.

D: Can you share with us your educational background?

CT: I’m a proud Thomasian Doctor (UST). Finished my general surgery training in Chinese General Hospital. Did clinical fellowship in surgical oncology and hepatopancreatobiliary surgery at the National Cancer Center, Singapore and Singapore General Hospital. I spent some time in a few hospitals in England. Pursued advanced minimally invasive surgery at the IRCAD in Strasbourg, France. The East and West are different. They have different techniques and approaches so it was really nice to have trained in different regions. Like how liver transplant is done, it differs from institution to institution. I learned a lot & developed my technique by visiting many high volume liver transplant centers in Hong Kong, Taiwan & South Korea. After that, I pursued a healthcare leadership and management course in Harvard Medical School. I went on further to finish a master’s degree in patient safety and clinical human factors. I acquired my Diploma in Management Hepatopancreatobiliary cancers at the Centre Hepato-Biliare in Paul Brousse Hospital and Hospital Henri Mondor for Liver transplantation and before that, I also spent time in Hangzhou 1st Affiliated Hospital. They performed at least 4 liver transplants a week!

D: Wow! You never stop learning!

CT: That’s how it is. Never stop learning. Everyday is a learning process.

D: What are the positions and titles you are currently holding?

CT: I’m currently the section head of hepatopancreatobiliary surgery unit in Makati Medical Center. I am one of the Directors of the PCS Cancer Commission, in charge of the surgical quality improvement program, Chair of the PCS Committee on Surgical Information, Communication & Technology, current Chair of the Philippine Board of HPB surgery & Past President of the Philippine Associate of HPB Surgeons. Also served as the Former Chair of the National Kidney & Transplant Institute.

In the international front. I’m the President of the ASEAN Laparoscopic HPB council. Member of the executive council of the International Laparoscopic Liver Society and also a member of the executive council of the Asia-Pacific HPB Association. Member of the Editorial Board of the World Journal of Surgery, British Journal of Surgery, HPBD International, to name a few.

D: Civil status? Kids?

CT: I have a 16 year old daughter whom I am proud to have raised single-handedly.

D: Do you think she will follow your footsteps in becoming a surgeon?

CT: No! She says she doesn’t want to be like me because I don’t have a life! Because she see’s how busy I am with clinical work and when I’m not busy with clinical work, I have administrative work and also work for the different societies. She wants to be an artist.

D: What made you fall in love with HPB surgery?

CT: Now that’s the million dollar question! I never chose HPB surgery, it chose me. When i applied in the National Cancer Center in Singapore, I was looking to go to breast cancer surgery. My mentor tricked me in going to HPB. He told me that there were 2 trainees already in the breast program, which means I will be third in line for the cases. So i asked if there were any other options. He told me to try out HPB since there’s no trainee in HPB. I agreed thinking that i’ll just transfer to the breast program once there’s an opening but i never got to. I cried everyday, questioning myself why I went into HPB. After a month in the HPB unit, I found it really interesting. I fell in love with it and it became my life.

"It’s the small wins everyday that’s important to me like a patient that goes home after a successful surgery. Perhaps, raising my daughter to what she is now. I’m very proud of her. That’s probably one of my biggest achievements."

D: Where are we now compared to Singapore, France, and England in terms of HPB surgery?

CT: We are still very far. HPB surgery is one of the last surgical frontiers. The development has been mainly in Japan and France. We are still catching up. My dream before when i first came back from training abroad is to make sure that the Philippines will be noticed in the world of HPB. We are not lacking in skills. Filipino surgeons are generally very skillful but we lack the tools, hospital admin support, and government funding.

D: What are the accomplishments you are most proud of?

CT: For me it’s the small accomplishments everyday that we should be proud of. I can’t really pinpoint any great achievement. Personally I don’t feel like I have achieved a lot. It’s the small wins everyday that’s important to me like a patient that goes home after a successful surgery. Perhaps, raising my daughter to what she is now. I’m very proud of her. That’s probably one of my biggest achievements.

D: Having a baby now and seeing the sacrifices that my wife makes to raise our daughter, I totally understand what you mean. Being a busy surgeon on top of that is another level altogether. All the professional accomplishments take a back seat to the most important things to you, your daughter and your patients.

CT: Yes and a lot of times, patients become friends. Doctor, turned friend, turned family. A lot of times, cancer patients want someone to be there for them. Providing comfort and compassion.

D: More often than not it starts out that the doctor is someone they look up to and eventually you become someone they trust.

CT: Yes that’s right! To cure sometimes but to comfort always.

D: What is your favorite surgery and why?

CT: Liver resection obviously! A lot of planning goes in to it, a lot of calculation. Not just the technical aspect of doing the surgery. It takes a certain character to be in this particular specialty. You really have to be very passionate about it. A lot of work goes into the pre-op. The nitty gritty. There’s a lot of preparation pre-op. That’s why I always tell my trainees that surgery starts in the radiology unit. At night, you dream about your upcoming surgery and you sleep with the scans in your mind. The success of the surgery depends on the surgical planning. The part I like most is the planning. It’s so satisfying at the end of the day to be able to perform the surgery exactly as you planned it in you head based on the scans. That’s happiness for me.

D: An excellent pre-op plan will always translate to an easier surgery.

CT: Yes!

D: What motivates you? What makes your clock tick?

CT: Something new? Something that I cannot achieve? That’s what motivates me. The more difficult it is, the more I’m drawn towards it. These difficult tasks motivate me. Makes life more exciting. Your brain is stimulated and gives you that avenue to innovate.

D: What keeps you busy outside work?

CT: Mostly sleep! As my daughter would say “sleep is sacred for mama”. I enjoy food a lot. I enjoy cooking. I enjoy eating more than cooking. I love art, that’s what my daughter and I enjoy most. Going to museums, looking at art and talking about it. I love traveling and photography. I take a lot of pictures then I curate them and come with collections of the things that I like. I have this fascination about doors. Every time a door catches my attention, I take a snap. I have a whole photo collection of interesting doors I’ve encountered around the world.

D: Why doors?

CT: Maybe because I want to be a door myself? I want to open doors for people. Opening a door is a mundane thing but if you open doors for other people, you give them opportunity. For patients, you give them hope. I don’t know why I have this fascination for doors ever since. I love colorful doors, specially in Europe where they have interesting metal ornaments or door knockers.

D: You mentioned your love for art, I saw your Ronald Ventura painting in your IG feed. Can you share with the story on how you acquired that painting? His work is in demand right now and it’s not easy to get one.

CT: That’s a very early piece. I got it 7 years ago. I don’t really know him personally. I was just helping out one of the societies with their art auction. That was a piece that he donated to that art auction. Nobody else was into that piece during the event but it struck me because of the anatomy. The arm of the girl in the painting is very realistic, very vivid. The muscles, the shadows, the lines on the nails. I was so fascinated with it so I took it. At the end of the evening, nobody took it because the people were more interested in the other paintings by Mallari and Malang. I didn’t know who he was then but it spoke to me so i took it! I love it so much! What I see in that painting is the masculinity with a feminine touch, a lady who gets her way.

Samahang Minamahal ang Atay (SMA) was founded in 2016 by a group of doctors led by Dr Catherine Teh, sharing the same passion in helping less fortunate Filipinos who deserve treatment for their HPB illness. They find and save funds for the surgical expenses and operate for free.