Dr. Gerald D. Dodd Jr.

1922 - 2015

Gerald D. Dodd, Jr., M.D.
1922-2015
Gerald Dewey Dodd, Jr., M.D., of Houston, died on Friday, September 25, 2015, at age 92, surrounded by his family.
Dr. Dodd was born in Oaklyn, New Jersey to Gerald D. Dodd, Sr. and Anne A. (Keveney) Dodd on November 18, 1922. He attended Blair Academy preparatory school, participating with distinction in football, wrestling, and boxing. He received a football scholarship to Cornell University, but chose Lafayette College instead, intending to pursue a career in medicine. World War II interrupted his studies and he joined the U.S. Navy as a hospital corpsman. His CO recommended him to the V-12 Officer Training Program through Swarthmore University, and he was commissioned with the rank of Ensign. After the war, he returned to Lafayette College, graduating in 1945. In the fall of 1946, he married his beloved wife of 67-years, Helen Carolyn Glenzing. He received his medical degree from Thomas Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, PA in 1947 and interned at Fitzgerald Mercy Hospital in Darby, PA in 1948. His ensuing residency in Radiology at Thomas Jefferson Medical College ran from 1948 to 1950. During the Korean Conflict, he joined the U.S. Air Force, rising to the rank of Captain, while serving as the Chief of Radiology at Mitchell AFB, and commanding a Mobile Radiology Unit, servicing virtually all the major basic-training posts in the U.S.
His subsequent impact on the field of radiology, specifically Breast Imaging, Gastrointestinal Imaging, and Organized Radiology, was enormous and reverberates throughout contemporary medicine. Beginning with his appointment as an Assistant Professor at Thomas Jefferson Medical College in 1952, he quickly became a leading figure in the field of Diagnostic Radiology. Fourteen years later, he became Professor and the first Chairman of the newly formed Division of Diagnostic Radiology at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. Over the next 25 years, he built the Division into an internationally recognized center focused on the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Over the same period, he held many other administrative posts and/or academic appointments at St. Joseph's Hospital, St. Luke's Hospital, Texas Children's Hospital, Hermann Hospital, Jefferson Medical College, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Texas Medical School, Baylor College of Medicine, and Texas A&M University. He also served in numerous local, state and national professional organizations, notably as Chairman of the Board and President of the American College of Radiology, President of the American Cancer Society, Trustee of the American Board of Radiology, President of the Texas Radiological Society, and President of the Houston Radiological Society. One of his greatest accomplishments during his career was the standardization of the use of mammography for the detection and diagnosis of breast cancer. His efforts had international impact and led to his receipt of the UICC Mucio Athayde Cancer Prize and a named lectureship in the Society of Breast Imaging. He also received 44 other prestigious awards including the gold medals of the American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America, American Roentgen Ray Society, Texas Radiological Society, Society of Breast Imaging, and Gilbert H. Fletcher Society; as well as the Presidential Medal of the American Cancer Society, the Haughton Medal of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, and the Cannon Medal of the Society of Gastrointestinal Radiologists. Additionally, he was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha and Sigma Xi, and was awarded the Thomas Jefferson University Alumni Achievement Award. He was included in the Who's Who: of Texas, of the South and Southwest, of the Men and Women of Science, of America, of Cancer, and in the World. He gave 21 national and international named lectureships, and served on the editorial boards of numerous scientific journals. He was author/co-author of 123 peer-reviewed publications, 22 book chapters, six monographs, four books, 22 scientific exhibits, and 27 other publications.
He is survived by his six children: Patricia Cording of Bolivia, NC; Michael Dodd of Houston; Barbara Dodd of Austin; Gerald Dodd, III of Denver, CO; Anne Britton of Houston; and Thomas Dodd of Ft. Worth; as well as thirteen grandchildren and one great grandchild. He was preceded in death by his wife, Helen C. Dodd, his parents, Gerald D. Dodd, Sr. and Anne Keveney Dodd, and two children, William Dodd and Susan Brown.
He will be deeply missed by all who knew him. A memorial mass will be celebrated at ten o'clock on Wednesday, September 30, 2015 at St. Anne's Catholic Church, 2140 Westheimer Road in Houston. Following the mass, the family will gather for a private interment at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston. In lieu of customary remembrances, please consider gifting to the American Cancer Society.