25/08/2025
Sad to hear about this. Dr. Norman is the best doctor, the one who takes care of us with our yearly checkups. We are calling on government agencies and investors. He is one of the best, if not the best. Please support ABC. We love you, Dr. Norman. Please share the spot.ph post pls.
“I can’t sleep. I feel I threw everything away by coming back,” says Dr. Norman Agustin. “At Morristown Medical Center, I was at the height of my career—respected, well paid, part of a system that worked. I gave all of that up because I thought I could make a difference here.” San Agustin established one of New Jersey’s top breast care programs, earned a national reputation for surgical precision, and spent decades at the peak of American medicine. But when friends asked when he would give back to his homeland, he eventually walked away.
In the Philippines, the New York–trained surgeon was shaken to find breast cancer killing proportionally more women than in the U.S.—a crisis fueled by late diagnoses and poor access to treatment. His response was bold. In 2017, he opened the Asian Breast Center, the country’s only specialized ambulatory breast cancer facility. Eight years later, it is shutting down. After caring for more than 5,000 patients and extending services to poor communities, ABC could no longer bridge the gap between its high standards and the country’s limited ability to pay. In the end, red tape, high costs, lack of government support, and a health system stacked against specialized centers forced its closing. Is there time to save it?
Read more here: https://bit.ly/45wHxTL
Words by Marge Enriquez
Photographs by Jilson Tiu
Cover design by Warren Espejo
