April 04, 2012
Women who meet Dr. Joseph Cleary ’69C rarely forget
him.
As
a general surgeon specializing in surgical oncology, he’s given
thousands of breast cancer patients the chance to regain the happy,
healthy lives they thought they’d never have again. And even though
he’s been doing if for more than 30 years, the joy that he gets
from seeing women go from despair and fear to hope and happiness is
something he’s never taken for granted.
“I started my practice in 1980,” he said, “and I’ve seen a lot
of changes in the surgical world during those years. In the field
of breast cancer, there have been major improvements in early
diagnosis and in various treatment modalities. Early diagnosis has
now given patients and doctors many options that weren’t available
even a few years ago. When I started my practice, most patients
were treated with some form of mastectomy, but today other options
are available to many patients. Genetic testing offers the ability
to identify the 5% of breast cancer patients who have actually
inherited an abnormal gene. We also have a test that shows the
normal or abnormal activity of several genes related to cancer
growth. Knowing that I’ve made a real difference for so many people
over the years has been one of the real joys of my life. I try to
remember each day to be grateful to God for allowing me the
privilege of being a physician.”
Although he is doing less surgery now than in the past and
devoting more of his time to teaching and administrative duties, he
still continues to practice and continues to follow the courses of
the patients whom he has treated over the past three decades. For
this gifted and caring physician, it could never be any other
way.
Cleary came to St. John’s as a transfer student in his junior
year. By that time he had decided to become a physician, and felt
that the rigorous Pre-Med program offered at St. John’s would give
him his best shot at getting into medical school. An MVP winning
pitcher at the high school level who played in the Brooklyn-based
Parade Grounds league, he also hoped to play college baseball, and
made it a point to speak with Head Baseball Coach John W. “Jack”
Kaiser ’49C to see if he could try to make the team as a
walk-on
“I visited Coach Kaiser in what was then Alumni Hall,” he
recalled, “and after telling him my story he invited me to come out
and take part in the team’s first practice. I worked out with the
team for a few weeks, and even though I wasn’t able to make all of
the practices because of my class and lab schedules, Coach Kaiser
encouraged me to stay with the team and come to as many practices
as I could. Although I did not play a full season, I’ve always been
grateful to him for giving me an opportunity to be a part of the
team. We still stay in touch, and I try to get back to see a few
games every year and also support some of the baseball
fundraisers.”
This loyal alumnus supports the University in other ways as
well. As a physician, Cleary knows that, given the tenuousness of
life, things can change in an instant, and that plans for the
future need to be made as early as possible. He has already named
St. John’s as a beneficiary in his will and is an active
participant in the activities of The McCallen Society, a donor
recognition group reserved for individuals who have made provisions
to include the University in their estate plans. His affinity for
St. John’s remains strong, and he is pleased to know that his
estate gift will help future students achieve success similar to
his own.
Even though he was only a St. John’s student for two years, he
remembers his time on campus fondly, attributing much of his future
success to the academic excellence of his Pre-Med studies.
“As I look back at my time at St. John’s, I realized right away
that I had come into a great academic atmosphere,” he noted. “It
wasn’t that there was a lot of needless pressure on me as a
student, but it was really a very deliberate academic pace with an
expectation that we would study hard and rise to as high a level of
excellence as possible. I recall all of my professors with
admiration, especially Professors Lacaillade, Concannon and
Liberti, my Biology Pre-Med mentors. I credit so much of my success
to my time at the University, and a few years ago I donated the
microscope that I used all during medical school to the St. John’s
Biology Program. It was another way to show my appreciation for all
that was done for me when I was studying there. I guess it’s the
same reason that I’ve put the University in my will. For me, it’s
all about paying it back by paying it forward.”