The odds were certainly against him. Paul Gordon and his sister were raised in a poor, single-parent home in the West Indies by his mother, Carmen, a young secretary Gordon acknowledges was thrown into a difficult, almost stereotypical situation and seemingly pre-destined to represent part of the broader statistics.

"In an effort to turn adversity into an advantage, she dedicated herself and her life completely to her children," said Gordan, chief of the hematology/oncology division for Nemours Children's Clinic in Orlando. "She had a deep sense of right and wrong and a profound concept that any task worth doing should receive 120 percent effort or none at all. Anything else was antithetical to success and utterly unacceptable."

 

Like most children, Gordon didn't appreciate his mother's unrelenting guidance at the time.

 

"The reality of this was irritating to a young child and absolute absurdity to a teenager," he recalled. "In actuality, for us there was no choice. I consider her influence in that regard the single most important factor in my success. It has further shaped my life and relationship with my own children. I realize that the prism through which my children view the world and the decisions they will make are heavily influenced by what we as parents give them and not through serendipity."

 

Gordon's mother also played a vital role in his mission to pursue medicine. She died of lymphoma at the age of 51.

 

"I always had a keen curiosity for the inner workings of the human body and when I was young, doctors seemed to be a fascinating group of people who knew everything," he said. ""My mother died while I was in medical school. She seemed so young and undeserving of such a fate. This changed my life dramatically and left a void in me that I am still unable to fill."

 

His mother's death charted Gordon's course into oncology.

 

"While I still cannot answer the myriad questions of why, I can truly empathize with each new family I meet," he said. "I understand the depth of the pain and the emptiness they feel. A life career of taking care of children with cancer and the chance to make an impact on the life of a child, however small, is rewarding beyond words. I cannot imagine another career."

 

After earning an undergraduate degree in chemistry/biochemistry from the University of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1987, Gordon earned his medical degree from the University of the West Indies School of Medicine six years later. He completed a rotating pediatric internship at Bustamante Hospital for Children in Kingston, Jamaica, and a pediatric residency at the University Hospital of the West Indies.

 

In 1996, Gordon relocated to South Florida. At Jackson Memorial Medical Center/University of Miami School of Medicine, he received the Outstanding Resident Teaching Award in 1997.

 

In 1999, Gordon headed to Memphis, where he fulfilled a pediatric hematology/oncology fellowship, followed by a pediatric bone marrow transplantation fellowship at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

 

In 2003, Gordon returned to Miami as assistant professor of clinical pediatrics at the University of Miami-Miller School of Medicine. He also co-directed the school's pediatric bone marrow transplantation program and practiced medicine at Jackson Memorial Medical Center.

 

Nearly three decades ago, Gordon faced his own medical challenge. In September 1980, he was diagnosed with insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM).

 

"I've never allowed my diabetes to define me," he said. "The sense of isolation and loneliness from feeling different were difficult especially in the earlier years. I tried hard to chart a clear course of who I am and all the good I was given, and not the obstacles that presented themselves."

 

Gordon and his wife, Bette, and children, Michaela, 5, and Caleb, 8, often play together during his spare time. A special weekend ritual involves long bike rides as a family.

 

Solo, Gordon typically finds a cozy nook with a good book, often times reading while also listening to music from his extensive jazz CD collection and perhaps enjoying exotic wine from the collection he and his wife have accumulated.