South Bend Medical Foundation Pathologist Named To The Pathologist Power List 2026: Leading Voices
Dr. Derrick Forchetti Recognized Among 50 Global Innovators Shaping the Future of Laboratory Medicine
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTH BEND, Indiana – October 7, 2026 –
South Bend Medical Foundation (SBMF) is proud to announce that Dr. Derrick Forchetti, MD, VP of Healthcare Innovations at the SBMF Innovation Institute, has been named to The Pathologist Power List 2026: Leading Voices. This prestigious annual recognition celebrates the top 50 individuals worldwide whose ideas, expertise, and leadership are helping to shape the future of pathology and laboratory medicine.
Selected through a blind peer-review process by a distinguished judging panel, Dr. Forchetti joins an elite group of laboratory professionals representing five continents and every career stage. The 2026 Leading Voices were chosen for their efforts to meet the demands of modern medicine through creativity, leadership, innovation, and fresh thinking that translates into meaningful change for patients.
“Pathology underpins nearly every clinical decision, and the Power List exists to shine a light on the people driving it forward,” said Helen Bristow of The Pathologist. “Dr. Forchetti exemplifies what it means to be a Leading Voice — taking on some of the most pressing challenges facing the field and building solutions that serve patients right in their own communities.”
Dr. Forchetti’s recognition centers on his pioneering work to bring innovation directly to community and independent laboratory settings — whose patients he notes are often overlooked by a healthcare innovation ecosystem heavily concentrated at major academic medical centers.
“Of the more than two million Americans diagnosed with cancer each year, roughly four in five receive that diagnosis outside an NCI-designated cancer center,” said Dr. Forchetti. “Community and independent labs need innovative solutions but are often presumed to lack the knowledge and resources to develop their own. We’re proving that assumption wrong.”
Among Dr. Forchetti’s most impactful initiatives at SBMF:
Digital Pathology Quality Control Pipeline
Recognizing that many smaller organizations lack the resources to adequately perform quality control in digital pathology, Dr. Forchetti and his team built a custom quality assessment pipeline using open-source software and consumer-grade hardware. The system analyzes approximately 250,000 slides annually, featuring artifact detection, trend dashboards, and stain- and specimen-aware acceptability thresholds. SBMF has also built a labeled artifact library to train proprietary models, reducing reliance on licensed software.
Expanded Breast Cancer Testing for Community Patients
Leveraging SBMF’s existing digital pathology infrastructure, Dr. Forchetti secured participation in an early access program for a novel breast cancer test that uses only clinical information and digital images — preserving tissue samples for additional testing. This initiative gives a limited number of eligible, newly diagnosed breast cancer patients in the South Bend region access to cutting-edge prognostic testing at no cost.
Workforce Development Through Education
To address the critical healthcare workforce shortage in laboratory medicine, Dr. Forchetti is collaborating with a regional university to develop an online introductory histology course for undergraduate students. Taught by a practicing pathologist and powered by a custom-built web-based whole slide image viewer, the course will combine self-guided study with interactive, instructor-led learning — generating awareness of and interest in laboratory medicine careers.
SBMF has served the South Bend community as an independent nonprofit laboratory for more than a century. The establishment of the SBMF Innovation Institute reflects the organization’s commitment to closing the gap between academic research environments and the community settings where most Americans actually receive their care.
The Pathologist Power List 2026: Leading Voices was published in the October 2026 issue of The Pathologist.
About South Bend Medical Foundation
South Bend Medical Foundation (SBMF) is an independent nonprofit laboratory that has served the South Bend, Indiana community for over 100 years. Through its Innovation Institute, SBMF develops creative solutions to the most pressing challenges in laboratory medicine, ensuring that patients in community settings have access to the same quality of care and innovation as those in major academic medical centers.
About The Pathologist Power List
The Pathologist Power List is an annual recognition program published by The Pathologist that celebrates individuals whose ideas, expertise, and leadership are helping to shape the future of pathology and laboratory medicine. The 2026 Leading Voices were selected through a blind peer-review process by a panel of pathology professionals from around the world.
Media Contact:
Traci Capellman-Duval | (574) 204-4466 | tcapellman-duval@sbmf.org | www.sbmf.org
