What happened to Dr Selina?

We often get asked why Dr Selina is no longer physically working at Stanhope Dental Centre, and let us tell you that if she could, she most certainly would. Selina is a people person, and loves her interactions with everybody and genuinely enjoyed treating her patients but even more so, the interactions she had with patients as she loves the feeling of being involved in everyone’s lives.

In April 2020, when Sydney was going through the grips of COVID-19 and we had to “close shop” due to government regulations, there was a personal battle going on that was equally (or more so) traumatising for Selina and her family as she dealt with a personal health diagnosis.

Selina wrote a letter to explain all of this to her patients at the time, and has done a few updates as time has gone on. As we have now updated the website, it feels funny to just repost the pages as they were written. It would also equally be a shame not to include a summary of the letters as they were written, because people still ask, and Selina is happy to share her story. We have summarised Selina’s letters as follows, which hopefully covers all of the information. If you have any further questions, don’t hesitate to reach out and contact the practice by text message or email.

Selina is still a big part of the practice and is integrally involved with the running of the practice in the background, it is just that she doesn’t get to stop in as often as she would like to, to visit and talk with her former patients. She is genuinely excited to catch up with her patients whenever she can…

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“On 1 April 2020, days after the practice was asked to close due to the COVID pandemic restrictions, I received a diagnosis of cancer in my right wrist (my dominant hand). I was diagnosed to be an Epithelioid Sarcoma  – which is a very rare and aggressive cancer that is not responsive to chemotherapy. It also has poor treatment success with radiotherapy. When diagnosed, there was no evidence of spread anywhere else in the body. The only ‘sensible’ treatment option was to amputate my right forearm, wrist and hand. Fifteen days after diagnosis, on 16 April 2020, the amputation surgery was done.

The thing that saddened me most was that the loss of my wrist and hand meant that my career and passion for treating patients, as a dentist, was over. My patients have always been like my other family whom I have shared stories with, watched children grow up and start their own families, laughed (uproariously in many cases) and formed a bond that has been special. The upshot of having the surgery is that I remain alive and well, and that this amputation will hopefully allow me to get to live to be 100 years old (if my other organs permit it)! I will always try and get back in to the surgery to visit as I continue to do the administrative and office work that I have always done. In doing so, I hope that I will be able to catch up with you when I can. We can still chat, share stories and laugh – I just won’t be doing your dental treatment. Ask me any questions you want – about my arm, about dentistry, about life! You know that I am always keen to chat!

Following the amputation surgery, my initial recovery was a bit slow. I tired easily and it was about three months before I was legally allowed to drive again. I remained positive though, and learned to do all of those basic tasks with my non-dominant hand – showering, dressing, writing (which definitely took some time to master) and all of your other day-to-day activities.

The isolation period during COVID-19 was quite fortunate in some respects, as it meant that I was able to recover at home without the guilt about letting the practice down. My family was also at home to help and support me, which was fantastic – and for that I was so thankful.

Many patients and friends, when they heard of my predicament, sent flowers, cards and well wishes. All of which brought a tear to my eye and a lump in my throat. It reminded me of how truly fortunate I am to have so many special people in my life. Thank you to everyone!

When I finally had my driver’s licence restored, I was relieved to have the independence of being able to drive myself around again. It was no ‘easy process’ as I had to have a 3hr driving assessment – 1.5hr interview with an occupational therapist (OT) for eyesight, cognitive, reading, interpreting visual road rules, etc and then 1.5hrs with a driving instructor in a modified vehicle with the OT in the back seat continuing the assessment; 4hrs of driving lessons in a modified vehicle with a driving instructor and then, the RMS driving test (just like when I went for my P plate test when I was 17 years old!). My car was modified – and I drive with an electronic spinner knob on the steering wheel. The spinner knob has buttons on it for the left and right turning indicators, horn, high beam and 3 speeds of front windscreen wipers. The electronics in the knob are not “legally required” any more, which is great because I can then carry a spare plain spinner knob with me. If ever I travel interstate, and I am legally allowed to drive any automatic vehicle that I might hire.

My first prosthetic was quite a basic prosthetic arm with a hook/claw. It was useful for some things but also could be a nuisance in other situations. Ultimately, I looked forward to being fitted for the myoelectric arm down the track

I returned to my Forensic Odontology work after a few months post-surgery and was very grateful for the warmth and support that they the whole team gave to me upon my return.

I occasionally find myself doing front desk duties at our practice when we have staff shortages –  I am certainly no Louise (who then has to work chair side with the dentists instead) but it gives me so much happiness to see everyone!

I continued to have follow up scans every 6 months for the next 5 years . My scans have remained clear, and they tell me, that reaching the 5 year mark is a very positive sign.  So, no more scans now for 2 more years.

As many of you are aware, my family and I are 4WD enthusiasts and so I have ventured out several trips including camping. I must admit I hesitated on going camping for some time as I wasn’t sure how I would “do” things.  It was mostly the mental/strategic battle of working out how I would do what I needed to do. I really knew everything would be OK as Darren has always taken care of everything on camping trips including cooking!

I mainly use my prosthetic arm/hand when I am at Forensics and in professional attire. I also use it if I anticipate eating meat or chicken at a meal as it allows me to use a knife to cut. I will also wear it if I think I’ll need to buy fruit and veg from the supermarket – those plastic bags are quite difficult to open with one hand!

My Forensic work continues unchanged. I am still one of the NSW Forensic Odontology team that regularly attends the NSW Mortuary to undertake identifications. Unfortunately however, the Forensic Odontology work is not an income source – it is more of a service provided to assist the Australian Police, Australian Justice and the Community. It does, however, allow me to stay active and utilise my skills, knowledge and expertise to make a valuable difference for others.

It’s amazing the small things that I miss, now that I can’t use 2-hands. I’m not talking about the obvious stuff – putting up my hair up, not being able to easily cut up my own food, etc.  I’m talking about the things that I don’t need to do, but the things I’d like to do, but can’t anymore.  A few months ago, my children wanted to play Mah Jong (a Chinese game similar to Gin Rummy – but using porcelain tiles).  It is a 4-player game that we only play periodically, but it struck me as I was playing – I can’t build the tiled walls as effectively anymore, I can’t feel the sensation of mixing the tiles as you swirl them around the table.  Insignificant but a loss that I felt.

There was a period of time at the 2-3 year mark, where I felt that I was really struggling with my mental health due to the lack of structure of my week and some Forensic work-related politics that occurred at the time.  I therefore went looking for other ways to pull myself out.  Since 2023, I now drive one of the buggies (golf carts) inside Westmead Hospital, to assist visitors who struggle to walk the long distances from the entrance to the many departments around the hospital.  It is a volunteer role (one day per week), but it combines my love of driving and my love of talking to people.  More importantly, I have to get up and leave the house for a full day shift where I have the capacity to give back to my community. 

In October 2023, Darren and I celebrated our 30^th wedding anniversary and went on holidays for a few weeks. This included travelling on The Ghan (on my bucket list), and a trip to the Maldives – what a great trip!

I have remained quite active not only with Forensics here in Sydney, but as an Australian delegate at INTERPOL. I was the Chairperson of the Forensic Odontology Sub-Working Group of the INTERPOL DVI Committee – a two year role which concluded in May 2025.  I was very privileged to have been elected to such a position and continue to attend INTERPOL meetings as an Australian delegate, as I have done for many years. I continue with my roles with the NSW Coroner and National roles as well as one of the Forensic identification experts for mass-casualty events.  

My latest myo-electric hand is great.  It has 24 grip capabilities (but in reality you actually only use 4 or 5 grip patterns with any regularity).  I decided not to go with a “skin-coloured” forearm as they really don’t look that realistic, so I had it made it from a black/silver carbon graphite.  The hand itself is also a black/silver colour.  It all looks very cool!  Other than with when I use it for professional use, I really only use the hand for supportive measures. It lets me hold paper, a set of keys, my phone etc.  and I can hold a knife to cut things or hold a light shopping bag.  It still doesn’t have great grip so I find that I mainly wear it when I am at a business function or lecturing in-person. A lot of the time it is just lighter and easier without it  – but I am glad that I have it though.

As I continue forward, my life has never been so busy – with Forensic obligations and trying to balance this with my volunteer work, family life and family holidays/outback 4WD adventures etc. I still try and pop into the surgery periodically (or as often as I can) as I still manage the administrative side of the practice and I really enjoy catching up with many of you when I can!  

I miss you all!

Love, 

Dr Selina Leow BDS(Syd)