College of American Pathologists Foundation Honors Houston Pathologist for Pioneering Free Cancer Screening
Dr. Dina Mody Focuses on Latina Women With Limited Access to Health Care
A Houston pathologist has been recognized for her pioneering work in providing free cancer screening for Latina women who don’t have access to the health care system. The College of American Pathologists Foundation honored Dina R. Mody, MD, FCAP, with the 2019 Herbek Humanitarian Award.
Dr. Mody accepted the award on behalf of Team Houston Methodist Hospital and BioReference Laboratories at the annual meeting of the College of American Pathologists (CAP) in Orlando.
“The story of Dr. Mody's leadership and community outreach is a story that has inspired the growth of breast and cervical cancer screening programs in Texas and launched other programs across the United States,” said Dr. Guillermo G. Martinez-Torres, MD, FCAP, president of the CAP Foundation.
As a pathologist and the medical director of cytology at Houston Methodist Hospital, Dr. Mody witnessed the devastating consequences when cancer is diagnosed in its advanced stages.
When Dr. Mody learned about the alarming numbers of Latina women in her own community without access to screenings for cervical cancer, she was determined to do something about it. She took the lead, forging a partnership between the CAP Foundation’s See, Test & Treat® program, and Dia de la Mujer Latina, also known as Day of the Latina Woman, an annual health screening fair.
Led by local pathologists, the CAP Foundation’s See, Test & Treat program provides free cervical and breast cancer screenings to underserved women across the US with same-day (or prompt) results, follow-up care, and education.
“Although the United States is the land of plenty, there are still many underserved amongst us who do not have cervical cancer, breast cancer, and other screening services available to them,” Dr. Mody said. “You don’t have to go far to change lives. Charity begins at home, and through the See, Test & Treat program, the CAP Foundation epitomizes that philosophy.”
Since her first See, Test & Treat program in 2012, working with volunteers from Houston Methodist Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, MD Anderson Cancer Center, and Houston-based BioReference Laboratories, Dr. Mody and her colleagues have served more than 1,000 women in the Houston community.
