DR. JAMES FREDERICK KENT MANCER, MD FRCP

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DR. JAMES FREDERICK KENT MANCER, MD FRCP

October 6, 1939 - February 14, 2025

We are saddened to announce Kent passed away peacefully at his assisted living home in Vancouver, British Columbia.
He is survived by his wife Lee Hsia Heah and his children, Lisa, Colin (Karen), Jennifer (Kristian) and Jonathan, his brother Terry and his grandchildren, Riley, Devin, Callum, Jonah and Elodie (whose visits to see her grandad especially brightened his final months). He was predecessed by his daughter Emily (2020), his parents, Alf and Nita (nee Alexander), his sister Alison (1986) and his brother Ted (1990).
Born in Winnipeg, Kent grew up enjoying many sports including baseball and hockey. He also spent summers helping his father on the family farm in West St. Paul and enjoyed many Manitoba lakes, especially West Hawk.
After graduating from Kelvin High he enrolled at the University of Manitoba Faculty of Medicine which led to an internship at St Boniface Hospital. He then accepted a residency at the University of Washington in Seattle where he trained in anatomical and clinical pathology. Kent’s curiosity and passion for learning earned him a fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York where he focused on pediatric pathology. He returned to Canada in 1972 to work as a pathologist at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. He loved his work and continued to seek out opportunities to learn and teach throughout his career.
In 1986 Kent fulfilled a childhood dream of living somewhere warm and tropical when he took a sabbatical and moved to Malaysia with his wife, Lee Hsia. During this time they travelled extensively throughout Southeast Asia even learning to scuba dive.
Kent returned to Canada briefly before moving to Singapore where he continued to practice and supervise the next generation of pathologists at Singapore General Hospital, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital and Changi General Hospital. He was also a clinical senior lecturer at the National University of Singapore’s School of Medicine and published over 100 papers during his career.
Kent continued to practice medicine into his late 70s. He returned to Canada in 2023 where he spent his final years at Amica, a retirement residence in North Vancouver. His family would like to thank his care team at Amica for their kindness during his time there.
Kent had many adventures and travelled the world, but it was at West Hawk lake where he seemed happiest. We will remember him happily reading a suitcase full of books in between long swims (doing his version of treading water) at the cottage. His family will be planning a Celebration of Life at a later date.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Mar 01, 2025