Tim Roberts, 26, with his father Ken (Credits: PA) A student who vowed to find a cure for his father’s terminal heart disorder when he was just 11 years old will next week begin a PhD researching cardiac disease treatments. Tim Roberts, 26, grew up on 42 acres of land outside Melbourne where his father, Ken, had emigrated from Northern Ireland and become a successful business owner. ‘We had a close relationship and me and my brother learnt a lot from him. He was interested in everything and taught us about engines, irrigation, all sorts,” said Mr Roberts. ‘Dad had a couple of heart attacks when I was 10 or 11, so since I was young most my memories of my father are him being ill. ‘That’s what precipitated my interest in medicine and the biomedical field as a whole.’ In 2009, the family moved 9,000 miles to Texas for a rare form of heart treatment not available elsewhere, but without health insurance it cost them all their savings. ‘I was very much aware of the fact ...