“When they said the word ‘tumour,’ everything else faded away.”

That’s what Katrina described when we first met, after being referred to me. She shared that her family had recently arrived in Canada. Everything was new. New jobs, new school, new routines, a new home.

At that time, her son Zephaniah, had been experiencing some jaw pain. He was thirteen years old and it seemed like something simple. Maybe wisdom teeth. Maybe growing pains.

But a routine orthodontic X-ray revealed something far more serious: a rare and aggressive tumour growing in his lower jaw.

Suddenly, what was meant to be a new beginning became a medical emergency.

My name is Sufian Sheikh, I grew up in the Maritimes and shared my education between Canada, Ohio and Vermont.

Although, I had the privilege of training at some larger centers, I chose to settle with my family and call Cambridge home. I have been so grateful to serve my patients in a thriving community where I can watch them grow and live healthy lives. 

I enjoy a challenge. In my personal time I mountain and ice climb. I hike and enjoy the outdoors immensely. This not only helps me keep up with my two very active boys, but also helps me keep focused on doing the best for my patients.

For Zephaniah, the standard surgical solution for the location of his tumor would have caused extensive tissue damage to his face and jaw.

The surgery would leave him with reduced function and visible scars that would grow more pronounced as he went through his teenage years.

Katrina described it as losing the future she had imagined for her son. “Kids can be cruel,” she said. “People would stare. Whisper. He’d carry the lasting emotional impact every day of his life.”

As a surgeon, these are the moments that stay with you. These are the moments that drive me to do more and seek other solutions.

I chose to practise at Cambridge Memorial Hospital because I believe families in communities like ours deserve access to care that is thoughtful, innovative, and personal – not simply what is available or easiest.

When I reviewed Zephaniah’s case, I believed there might be another way.

With the help of donor-funded technology, including advanced 3D imaging and surgical modelling, I was able to plan an entirely different approach – one designed to remove the tumour while preserving what mattered most: Zephaniah’s ability to eat, speak, smile, and grow into himself.

Every decision was made with his future in mind. A decision that had risk, and his parents trusted me to take this novel approach. 

The tumour was removed, and his jaw was rebuilt using the bone from his hip and ribs, carefully shaped to allow for natural growth and full function. The surgery was performed entirely through the mouth, leaving no external scars using a specialised tool that donors made possible.

When Zephaniah woke up, his face was still his own. A little swollen, but otherwise he looked like he did before the surgery – but now tumour free.

He could eat. He could speak. He could smile. He could be a teenager again.

“He was treated with such dignity,” Katrina later told me. “He looked like himself, and that meant everything. You made that possible for my son.”

Today, Zephaniah is a thriving university student. Healthy, confident, and looking ahead. People who meet him now would never guess what he has been through.

I am writing to you today, because none of this was possible without you.

Cambridge Memorial Hospital does not receive government funding for the specialized equipment and technology that made Zephaniah’s surgery possible. This level of care exists because donors like you choose to support it.

When you renew your gift today, you help ensure that when the next family arrives, frightened, overwhelmed, and hoping for more than the standard path your hospital is ready.

Simply put, we are ready, thanks to you.

Ready with skill.
Ready with compassion.
Ready to do what is best for our patients.

This is what it means to be Future Ready.

With your support, Cambridge Memorial Hospital will continue to be a place where courage, care, and community come together to change what is possible.

If you are able, renew your gift today. Your kindness does not just support care.

It moves mountains.

With sincere gratitude,
Dr. Sufian Sheikh
Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeon
Cambridge Memorial Hospital