About The Rose
- Center for Breast Health Excellence
It's All About
Saving Lives
From a time long before pink ribbons covered the landscape, Dorothy and Dr. Dixie’s passionate advocacy established The Rose as an acclaimed model of breast health care. From mammograms to biopsies to treatment, The Rose excels in advanced digital imaging, mobile mammography, patient navigation, and medical excellence.
Since 1986, The Rose has provided a full range of breast health services to more than one million patients. Its mission is to save lives through quality breast health services, advocacy and access to care for all. As one of 12 ACR Designated Comprehensive Breast Imaging Centers in Houston, The Rose is led by Fellowship trained physicians and its nationally recognized Patient Navigation Program ensures access to treatment and a continuum of care for all women. As a major part of Southeast Texas’ Healthcare Safety Net, The Rose is a strong advocate for access to care. Annually, The Rose provides direct medical services to 40,000 insured and uninsured patients. Two Houston-based comprehensive Diagnostic Centers and a fleet of Mobile Mammography Coaches provide services to women throughout 45 counties in Southeast Texas.
"When you leave us, you truly know we care."
Dorothy Gibbons, CEO & Co-Founder of The Rose
- The Rose
Our Mission & History
Fueled by frustration and driven by passion, the lives of Dorothy Weston Gibbons and Dr. Dixie Melillo have been filled with firsts.
Dorothy established the first PR department at Bayshore Medical Center where she first met Dr. Dixie, one of the first female surgeons to graduate from UTMB. With camera in hand, Dorothy began to chronicle the startling number of women with late-stage breast cancer coming to see Dr. Dixie. Frustrated that breast cancer awareness and access to care were sorely lacking, the two women started their quest to educate. Soon they established The Rose, the first nonprofit breast cancer organization based on the insured covering the costs of the uninsured. The Rose has been in operation since 1986.
"Saving lives through quality breast health services, advocacy and access to care for all."
The Rose reduces deaths from breast cancer by providing access to screening, diagnostics and treatment services to any woman regardless of her ability to pay. The Rose addresses any barrier that might keep a woman from caring for her own needs. Studies show women often put personal needs on hold while tending to the needs of others. Many women cite costs and lack of access as reasons they delay preventive services. Yet early detection mammography screenings are the most powerful weapons in the fight against breast cancer—which is 98% curable when detected early.
Every service offered by The Rose is available to the uninsured through one of many sponsorship programs. In fact, the whole purpose of the Empower Her® Sponsorship Program is to ensure any woman has access to breast cancer screening, diagnosis and care. From the initial screening mammogram through diagnostic procedures such as ultrasound and biopsies, as well as access to treatment—all are part of the quality breast health care offered at The Rose.
