Inspired by the Heart

Leighton Lam finds the link between art and health.

Leighton Lam has always poured his heart into his artwork. “It started when I was a teenager and I experimented with polyester resin designs for my surfboard,” says the Honolulu resident. “From that, it turned into using resin as an art medium.”

By his count, Lam has showcased his resin art at 15 solo shows and more than 100 group shows over the years. He has also experimented with other art forms, starting successful jewelry and lighting businesses. “I knew from a young age that I wanted to be an artist,” he says. “I make art for the love of art, but I’ve also found ways to turn it into a business opportunity.”

Last year, while preparing for a show, Lam began to struggle with shortness of breath.

“I had accidentally inhaled some smoke when I torched some resin on a piece I was working on, and I couldn’t get a lot of air with each breath,” he says. He started to notice that same sensation whenever he tried to take a deep breath. “I was working so hard on this show that I had really neglected my health, so I thought I was just out of shape.”

But after a month and a half of chest pain and shortness of breath, Lam decided to talk with Adventist Health Castle’s Robert Smitson, MD. “He asked me all about it,” Lam recalls. “He said, ‘That’s not your lungs. It sounds like you’re not getting enough blood to your heart.’”

Answers and action

Dr. Smitson helped Lam make an appointment in Adventist Health Castle’s cardiac catheterization lab. Specialists used contrast dye and imaging to examine his heart arteries. They uncovered one fully blocked artery and another that was narrowed by 80 percent.

Interventional cardiologist Ramy Badawi, MD, acted quickly and performed a procedure called percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). He placed stents — small, expandable mesh tubes — in both narrowed arteries. The stents restored blood flow and significantly reduced Lam’s risk of heart attack.

Although Lam lives in Honolulu, he knew he could trust the providers at Adventist Health Castle for his complex needs. “I’m so thankful that they took this seriously,” he says. “If I had gone anywhere else or waited, it would have taken several weeks and a lot more tests to find and solve the problem.”

Focusing on health

The stent procedure took place only two weeks before the opening night of Lam’s show, and he continued preparing for the event as he recovered. While it was a lot of work, including hanging more than 70 pieces of art and orchestrating a reception, Lam says he felt motivated by what he had been through. “Dr. Badawi said that I now had more blood flowing through me after the stents, and I felt it,” he says. “That energy got me through it all.”

Lam, an avid surfer, says that this has been an eye-opening experience for him in many ways. “I know how consumed I get making my art, and the six months I had to put this show together took a very real physical toll on me,” he says. He has continued to make art, even creating a few pieces that he says are “my veins expressing themselves.”

Lam is inspired and more focused on prioritizing his health now, and recently completed a three-week bike tour of Europe. “I have a greater appreciation for how important it is that I not neglect my responsibility to stay fit and healthy.” •