The Commission on Cancer is a consortium of 47 professional organizations dedicated to improving the survival and quality of life for cancer patients.

1. For Immediate Release April 12, 2013
Contact: Damian Becker, Manager of Media Relations
(516) 377-5370
Dr. Wu Appointed Liaison to Cancer Commission
Oceanside, NY— Leester D. Wu, MD, has been appointed South Nassau Communities
Hospital’s Cancer Liaison Physician to the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Commission
on Cancer (CoC). Cancer Liaison Physicians are an integral part of cancer programs accredited
by the ACS.
The CoC is a consortium of 47 professional organizations dedicated to improving the
survival and quality of life for cancer patients. The Commission achieves its goal through
standard-setting, cancer prevention, research, educational activities, as well as monitoring
comprehensive quality care.
The Commission’s core functions include establishing standards to ensure the delivery of
quality, multidisciplinary, and comprehensive cancer care in health care settings; surveying
facilities to assess compliance with those standards; collecting standardized data from accredited
facilities to measure quality; using data to monitor treatment patterns, support cancer control, and
enhance clinical surveillance activities; and developing effective educational interventions to
improve outcomes at the national, state, and local level. There are currently more than 1,400
CoC-accredited cancer programs in the United States and Puerto Rico, and approximately 70
percent of newly diagnosed cancer patients are treated in these institutions.
“Our cancer care team is in the vanguard of developing and introducing the latest
advancements in treatment technologies and therapies and we place special emphasis on working
with our patients and their families to develop patient-centered treatment plans,” said Dr. Wu,
who is associate director of the department of radiation oncology at South Nassau. “I look
forward to working with my fellow colleagues and with the commission to offer the insight and
information that will foster innovation and advancement in cancer care.”
The three-year appointment places Dr. Wu among an elite group of approximately 1,600
physicians who are recognized for their leadership in the development of cancer programs and
for their expertise in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Cancer Liaison Physicians are
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2. responsible for spearheading CoC initiatives within their cancer program; collaborating with
agencies, such as the American Cancer Society; and facilitating quality improvement initiatives
utilizing data submitted to the CoC's National Cancer Database (NCDB). The CoC collects data
from its accredited cancer programs and provides tools back to these facilities to facilitate the
analysis of patterns of diagnosis, treatment, and quality of care.
Dr. Wu brings a diverse background in community practice and research to South
Nassau’s Radiation Oncology Department. He is a specialist in Intensity Modulated Radiation
Therapy (IMRT), Image Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT), prostate brachytherapy and
stereotactic radiosurgery using the Gamma Knife.
After completing his undergraduate studies at Harvard University, Dr. Wu earned his
medical degree at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, where he completed a
year-long research project that examined the success of radiotherapy in the treatment of early
stage breast cancer. His research projects have been published in the International Journal of
Radiation Oncology and the Journal of Organic Chemistry and he has presented research at
major meetings and conventions of radiation oncologists, including the American Chemical
Society and American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology. Dr. Wu is board
certified in radiation oncology and he is fluent in Taiwanese and conversant in Spanish.
South Nassau Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 435
beds, more than 900 physicians and 3,000 employees. Located in Oceanside, NY, the hospital is
an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac,
oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health and emergency services. In
addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and
elective angioplasty and is the only hospital on Long Island with the Novalis Tx™ and Gamma
Knife® Perfexion radiosurgery technologies. South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center by the
New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the
American College of Surgeons and is recognized as a Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence by
the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery. For more information, visit
www.southnassau.org.
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