Cebu doc lauded for fight vs leprosy

A Cebu-based pathologist was awarded the 2013 Damien-Dutton Award, the same award given posthumously to US President John F. Kennedy and Mother Teresa, for his active role in the campaign against leprosy.

Dr. Rodolfo Abalos is the 59th awardee and the fifth Filipino to receive the honor.

The late US president received the award in 1965 and Mother Teresa was awarded in 1984.

“Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to receive this award,” said Abalos in his acceptance speech last Wednesday at the Cebu Parklane International Hotel.

The Damien-Dutton Society for Leprosy Aid, Inc. awards persons or groups for making significant contributions against leprosy.

The 87-year-old Abalos was recognized for his more than 40 years of service in caring for leprosy patients and doing research work for new treatment procedures on the disease.

The late president John Kennedy, whose award was received by his brother, then US senator Robert F. Kennedy, was recognized as the first US President to proclaim “World Leprosy Day.”

Residency

Mother Teresa, meanwhile, was given the award for her “personal approach in serving the world’s poor and handicapped sufferers” of the disease.

Born and raised in Aguilar town, Pangasinan province, Abalos completed medical school in Manila in 1952, followed by a pathology residency in Dallas, Texas.

In 1959, Dr. Abalos was invited to work as a pathologist in Chong Hua Hospital in Cebu City.

“At that time, Chong Hua was still relatively new. It was still a hundred-bed facility,” he said.

In 1963, he was asked to work as a staff pathologist at Leonard Wood Memorial (LWM) Center for Leprosy Research.

There, he diagnosed thousands of patients and honed his skills as a leprosy pathologist.

He was promoted as chief pathologist at LWM in 1969, a position he held until 2007.

In the blood

Until today, he continues to serve as consultant pathologist at LWM, mentoring junior pathologists interested in the challenges of diagnosing leprosy.

“There is much to be learned in leprosy,” Abalos said.

The doctor said leprosy is an “interesting and fascinating” disease and encouraged younger medical practitioners to explore the subject.

His wife, Corito, attested he never had a hard time dividing his attention between work and family.

“He is a very good husband, a very good father and he still is,” she said.

They have three children, with two also specializing in pathology and the third pursuing cardiovascular work.

Dr. Abalos said two of his grandchildren just graduated from medical school and two are still studying medicine. “I guess it runs in the blood,” said Abalos, an avid golfer. /Victor Anthony V. Silva, Correspondent