With Guam's longtime and only pathologist, Dr. Mohammed Alsabban is set to retire in the coming months, there’s been some concern among the community on shoring up the gap.

Pathologists play a critical role in hospitals by diagnosing and characterizing diseases like cancer.

It’s especially important on Guam as every year, an average of 381 residents are diagnosed with invasive cancer, according to the Guam Cancer Registry.

One person is diagnosed with cancer every day and on average, 161 residents die of cancer each year.

The Guam Memorial Hospital quickly hired a new doctor to fill those shoes.

“The key priority is just to do a good job, work hard for the surgeons and take care of the community,” said Dr. Jerald Scott.

Dr. Scott most recently worked in Hawaii and brings with him over 25 years of experience.

“I’ve worked at the fellowship in Hematopathology in New Mexico and a bloodbanking fellowship in Florida. And then, worked in Alaska for 15 years before coming to Hawaii,” added Dr. Scott.

Dr. Scott is now the Laboratory Medical Director and the Chief Surgical Pathologist at GMH.

He’s already had his first day at work and admits the public hospital’s leaky roof is a major concern.

“The leaking roof is definitely an issue. There are some hospitals in Hawaii that have mold and mildew issues. They’re on the windward side of the island and it’s kind of like a jungle-like climate,” said Dr. Scott.

But he’s confident he will be able to meet the needs of patients.

“There’s a very dedicated, hardworking bunch of surgeons here and they’re very competent,” Dr. Scott said. “The equipment here is all relatively new and freshly maintained. The laboratory technicians are very dedicated and competent so I don’t have any concerns about that at all.”

GMH Public Information Officer Cindy Hansen added the work to repair the leaky situation is in progress.

“Some of the issues of the leakings are actually caused by the ductwork in the hospital, like the airconditionings. It’s been a problem for many, many years. But since I’ve been working here, I have seen major steps forward and hopefully the roof repairs will be done soon,” said Hansen.

Meantime, Hansen said Dr. Alsabban, who has served the community for a decade, will be at GMH until March.