Dentist aims to chase patients’ pain away

A hot cup of coffee is lifted off the table. As the liquid approaches the drinker’s mouth and leaves the cup, the pain sets in. A deep cringe that starts in the tooth and escalates throughout the body makes it impossible to enjoy a simple drink.

It is for instances like this that Ehfad Shah became a dentist.

So many people live with constant pain, not being able to enjoy the simple pleasures of life because of dental problems, Shah said. “I want to help alleviate these problems so people can live a happy, healthy life.”

Shah, owner of Cobblestone Dental Center, earned his dental degree in Philadelphia, but moved away following his graduation.

“I just got tired of the cold,” he said.

Shah chose Arizona as his desired dental destination because of the weather and its close location to West Coast recreation. He said when he was living in Philadelphia, he would see commercials of people riding mountain bikes and going swimming in the ocean and thought that was something he wanted to do.

He almost didn’t get the opportunity to come west. During his final year of dental school, Shah noticed a reoccurring pain in his leg after playing basketball. It turned out the pain was caused by cancer. “I was shocked,” he said. The future dentist battled with disease and eventually overcame the obstacle. “They say with the type of cancer I had, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, if you make it five years, you are cured,” he said. “I am going on eight years now.”

While he conquered cancer, Shah is continuing to battle his patients’ dental issues in Maricopa. He started his business in the city nearly three years ago and has seen his practice grow from a staff of three to six.

“When I first decided to come to Maricopa, the growth was so incredible it was difficult to find a storefront,” Shah said.

Even though Shah said in recent months business has slowed down, he continues to do fine, and he plans on being in Maricopa a long time.

Photo by Jake Johnson