The anxiety of cancer recurrence, agony, and fear of death oftentimes disrupt the lives of advanced breast cancer patients. As a result, it is critical that an oncologist not just provides the highest quality cancer therapy, but also addresses the impact of the disease on a patient’s overall well-being.
Dr. Jason Copeland, a Jamaican breast surgical oncologist, is one such specialist who commits his full efforts and attention to breast health. His passion for administering holistic care to cancer patients inspired him to open Jamaica’s first specialist breast care facility- the Breast Health & Oncology Care Centre.
His strong drive to make a difference stems from his early experiences as a young surgical trainee. Although effective breast cancer treatments have been available in Jamaica, Dr. Copeland saw the need to expand breast care since many young women were diagnosed but received inadequate care.
“In my training as a young surgeon, I saw a lot of women who were diagnosed with breast cancer, a lot of them were young women too, and what used to happen, and I know it still happens, is that a lot of them are just treated with a mastectomy, without any reconstruction, and they’re left rather deformed and this is life long,” he said.
Referring to one of the significant cases that led him to continue on this quest, he stated that many women feel depressed not just because they have cancer, but also because of how their body appears.
“I had a 19-year-old girl maybe about 15 years ago, that time I was a very young surgical trainee. She presented with a very aggressive breast cancer, did a mastectomy and it recurred and she eventually passed. But at 19, the only thing that we did for her was a mastectomy, and you could see how she was depressed and how she felt about the whole thing. Even though she had aggressive cancer, she was so upset about how she looked,” he recounted.
During his development, he recognized that there are other treatments for breast cancer patients, but he needed extra training outside of Jamaica to acquire these skills. He was propelled to study overseas at the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Centre in New York to contribute significantly to Jamaica’s breast cancer treatment.
After completing his studies in 2020, he planned to use his advanced skills to create his breast health center. This dream of his quickly became a reality after he partnered with the Andrews Memorial Hospital which also had a vision for advancing breast cancer care in the country. Their united efforts resulted in Jamaica’s first specialist breast oncology center.
The Breast Health & Oncology Care Centre, which is housed within Andrews Memorial Hospital, formally opened on February 4, 2021, and provides personalized multidisciplinary management of patients with breast cancer as well as comprehensive care for benign (non-cancer) breast conditions.
Dr. Copeland, the visionary, explained that the services offered by his team are in the best interest of women suffering from this disease, as he and his colleagues take a modern approach to administering the ultimate breast care.
“So the breast and oncology centre here, what we have is myself as a breast surgical oncologist in-house, we have a team of medical oncologists as well, and we have affiliative specialist, so like radiologist oncologists, we are able to see a patient, who has breast cancer, have a complete evaluation of the patient, and have an integrated multidisciplinary consultation and assessment of that patient and then make the best decision amongst the team and for the patient’s management. And that’s how breast cancer should be treated in 2022.”
Additionally, Dr. Copeland shared that he and his team also promote breast cancer education to the Jamaican population as there are many misconceptions surrounding its causes and treatments.
“I think we are far behind in terms of where we should be in population education on breast cancer. Still, a lot of myths about breast cancer in terms of its causes and how it should be treated, so a lot of persons are still presenting very late with their breast cancer diagnosis I think we have a far way to go in terms of population education when it comes on to breast cancer.”
He said the Breast Health & Oncology Care Centre strives to fulfill its goal by raising public awareness. This is accomplished by conducting breast cancer presentations at schools, churches, banking institutions, and insurance companies.
Additionally, Dr. Copeland prioritizes producing newsletters that provide invaluable information for medical practitioners and his team members on new matters relating to breast cancer.
“We have a quarterly newsletter that I sit down and do most of the writing. It’s usually geared towards general practitioners, physicians, as well as the general public as we speak of some aspects of a breast disease, where we try to educate a patient about options of treatment and our physicians about some things that are new in breast cancer.”
He further noted that while breast cancer comes with physical challenges, many women become emotionally distressed. Therefore, he seeks to offer care that exceeds physical attention but also caters to mental and emotional issues by fostering a strong doctor-patient relationship.
“One of the most important things is that patients want to feel that they’re coming to somebody that cares about what happens to them and is not just a matter that you’re treating a disease or treating cancer, but a patient must be comfortable with you so that you can develop that trust, that surgeon-patient relationship.”
The passionate doctor said the words “Believe” and “Hope”, which are mounted on the centre’s wall, are an encouragement to women and that breast cancer should not be viewed as a death sentence.
“I will encourage women that this is 2022, a lot of women with breast cancer are doing well”, he added, noting that with appropriate and timely treatment life expectancy has increased significantly.
Though breast cancer can be an emotionally challenging disease because it affects a symbol of womanhood, which is the breast, Dr. Copeland encourages women to have hope and believe they will survive the fight.
In light of this, he encourages medical practitioners to be compassionate when caring for these patients as women will have different emotions towards it.
“It’s very important that you don’t have a blanket approach to your patients and [that] you take the time to speak to your patient about how she feels about it (her diagnosis),” he encouraged.
His drive to educate his patients, colleagues and by extension, the wider Jamaican population on breast cancer, has made him one of the island’s heroes when it comes to breast health.
Through the Breast Health & Oncology Care Centre, Dr. Copeland strives to facilitate access to the highest standards of interdisciplinary care for patients with breast cancers and other breast diseases. The centre seeks to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with breast cancer in Jamaica while improving the quality of life for patients.
