Santa Dorotea is an ancient Catholic church in the Diocese of Rome served by the Conventual Franciscan friars.

It was first attested to in a papal bull of Pope Callistus II in 1123, being referred to under its first dedication of San Silvestro alla Porta Settimiana.

In 1475 the church was rebuilt and given full parochial status, and the relics of St Dorothy were enshrined here by Giuliano De Datis, the parish priest, in 1500.

In 1566, the church was re-listed under the present dedication and the first free public school in Europe was opened in 1592 by St Joseph Calasanz in the house next door, the first school of the Piarist Order of priest educators.

On 12 June 2014, it was established as a titular church by Pope Francis with Javier Cardinal Lozano Barragán, president emeritus of the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Assistance to Health Care Workers, as its first Cardinal-Priest having served 10 years as a cardinal-deacon.