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Dr. Shridevi “Shri” Singh, a widely respected breast cancer surgeon in West Islip and a single mother who devoted her life to caring for others, has died — only weeks after losing her teenage daughter to an aggressive form of cancer.
Singh’s passing was confirmed Friday evening by a spokesperson for Catholic Health, the parent organization that manages The Cancer Institute at Good Samaritan University Hospital in West Islip, where she practiced.
The health system has not yet commented further, and details about the physician’s cause of death remain unclear.
Singh, 41, died on Wednesday, one month after the loss of her only child, 15-year-old daughter Haley, a high-achieving St. Anthony’s High School sophomore. The teen passed away Oct. 6, just a week after receiving a cancer diagnosis accompanied by liver failure.
Their story drew extraordinary attention across Long Island, in part because Singh, who lived in Massapequa, had built her career around treating the very disease that claimed her child.
The West Islip Breast Cancer Coalition for Long Island, where Singh served on the board, posted a moving tribute Friday morning. The organization called her passing “a heartbreaking reminder of how precious life is,” describing her as a gifted surgeon whose empathy extended far beyond the walls of the operating room.
Born in the South American country Suriname before making her home on Long Island, Singh became known not only for her surgical skill but for the calm reassurance she offered frightened patients and families. She specialized in advanced oncoplastic breast techniques and cared for women navigating breast cancer, high-risk diagnoses and benign breast disease.
Services set for Dr. Shridevi ‘Shri’ Singh
Patients and colleagues often spoke of Singh’s warmth — the way she explained difficult news and how she stayed present during the hardest conversations.
Singh built her medical career while raising Haley as a single mother. In 2022, reflecting on finishing her grueling five-year surgical residency, she wrote publicly about the long nights, the support systems that lifted her up, and the joy of sharing that milestone with her daughter.
“I have loved and lost, I have struggled and triumphed… and through it all, I have always prevailed for the better,” she wrote in the post, that is included here below the story.
Friends had previously described the bond between mother and daughter as unbreakable. It was formed through their shared challenges, triumphs and the sacrifices that accompany a career in medicine.
‘An immeasurable void’ left behind
The breast cancer coalition said Singh’s absence leaves “an immeasurable void,” noting that she poured herself into community education, early detection efforts and patient support. The coalition wrote that Singh’s work guided programs that touched thousands of Long Island families.
Funeral arrangements had not yet been announced as of Friday afternoon.
Top photos: (clockwise from left) Dr. Shridevi Singh, via LinkedIn; The Cancer Institute at Good Samaritan University Hospital, taken by Mike White; and Singh with her daughter Haley, celebrating the completion of her residency program five years ago, via Facebook.
