area health care
Dr. Nathan Kobrinsky
a lifetime of saving others D r. Nathan Kobrinsky can immediately point out why he wanted to be a pediatric cancer physician. While looking off into the distance, he recounted a story of a 14- or 15-year old girl he was treating for bone cancer when he first started his career. Her leg needed amputation, but the cancer had spread into her lungs and she eventually passed away from the disease. That’s not where the story ends, though. “The quirk of the story is that one of the nurses on that floor also had one leg, also had been treated for the same bone cancer, also had had the cancer spread to the lung, but when hers spread it was just one at a time,” said Kobrinsky. “So she had one, the surgeons took it out. She had another, the surgeons took it out. She had six lung operations and after all that, she still went on and became a nurse.” Those stories solidified his choice in pursuing his dreams as a pediatric oncologist. For more than 30 years, Kobrinsky has dedicated his life to giving kids diagnosed with cancer not only a cure, but a normal life.
24 | APRIL 2015 | FARGOMONTHLY.COM
Most of his life decisions have been affected by his career. His decision to move to Fargo is no different. Kobrinsky, originally from Canada, was treating a patient in Winnipeg. That patient’s parent ended up managing the Radisson in Fargo where Kobrinsky and his wife came to visit. When Kobrinsky heard about an opening in Fargo, it was an easy choice for him to make the move. “I loved it (Fargo) from the beginning,” said Kobrinsky. “Always have, always will.” While it is a challenging profession, it is obvious to anyone who has met Kobrinsky that he is passionate about what he does. He has a unique mentality when it comes to communicating with his patients. “… When I speak to the room for the first time, I speak to the child and the parents can listen,” Kobrinsky said. “I speak to the parents through the child. I look at the child and I don’t look at the parents so it’s not that the child is the third person.” While the majority of childhood cancer patients recover, which is a stark contrast to when Kobrinsky first started his career,
he must face the harsh reality that he will not be able to save all his patients. Despite Kobrinsky’s many years of experience, each loss is still devastating. “Every time that there is a loss, you feel like part of your soul is removed,” Kobrinsky said. “These are kids that when we first see them, most of the times, we have expectations that they are going to be able to grow up, have children, have jobs. Their lives are nipped in the bud at a young age. It’s very painful for the family. We get to know and love these kids. There’s always a sense of, ‘What could I have done differently? Why is this happening?’” In the Roger Maris Cancer Center, there is a bell that patients ring on their final day of treatment. The ringing of the bell signifies all the pain, hurt and, ultimately, triumph the patient faced while going through treatment. This powerful moment is music to Kobrinsky, but it’s not just for him. “It’s not so much for me, it’s for the family,” Kobrinsky said. “The bell signifies what they already know, which is that the battle is won. … Parents always have this fear, and children, that, ‘I’m doing OK, but am I really going to make it?’ When they hear the bell, it’s a trumpet of success. It’s for them.”