Nearly 13,000 of the 55,000 Americans diagnosed with a head or neck cancer this year will die despite the fact that head and neck cancers are highly treatable and the cure rate is good when they are detected in the early stages.

1. News From:
For Immediate Release April 5, 2013
Contact: Damian Becker, Manager of Media Relations
(516) 377-5370
South Nassau, Senator Skelos Encourage Screening
for Head & Neck Cancer
Oceanside, NY, April 5, 2013…. According to the Prevention Committee of the
American Head and Neck Society, an annual screening for head and neck cancers assists in the
early diagnosis and successful treatment of them.
Unfortunately, nearly 13,000 of the 55,000 Americans diagnosed with a head or neck
cancer this year will die despite the fact that head and neck cancers are highly treatable and the
cure rate is good when they are detected in the early stages.
The Gertrude & Louis Feil Cancer Center at South Nassau Communities Hospital in
collaboration with New York State Senator Dean Skelos will hold a Free Head and Neck Cancer
Screening Day on Friday, April 19, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. in the Hewlett – Woodmere Public Library
(1125 Broadway, Hewlett, NY).
Risk factors for head and neck cancers include habitual smoking or use of smokeless
tobacco; frequent alcohol consumption; or excessive exposure to the sun. Tumors most often
occur in the nasal passages, sinuses, mouth, throat, larynx (voice box), swallowing passages,
salivary glands, and the thyroid gland.
“Our mission is to safeguard the quality of life of the residents of the communities we
serve by providing services and programs that prevent or detect debilitating or life-threatening
diseases or illnesses,” said Rajiv Datta, MD, medical director of The Gertrude & Louis Feil
Cancer Center and chairman of the Department of Surgery at South Nassau. “If you are at risk
or are experiencing symptoms, I strongly encourage you to visit the Hewlett – Woodmere Public
Library on April 19 for a free screening.”
For more information, call (516) 632-3350 or (516) 377-5333. Information may also be
obtained by sending an email to oncology@snch.org.
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

2. 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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