colonia high school brain cancer

Colonia graduate Al Lupiano, an environmental scientist, was the first to sound the alarm about the potential cluster. A man investigating his former high school in New Jersey says he has counted 115 people who attended or worked there have had a rare brain tumor. Is it a cancer cluster or a coincidence? Dozens of former teachers and students have . A former Woodbridge man has identified 84 Colonia High School alumni and former staffers with rare brain tumors and wants health officials to investigate. A 2012 study in the journal Critical Reviews in Toxicology demonstrates how tricky it can be to confirm a cancer cluster. also a graduate of the high school, died recently from brain cancer. McCormac said residents are expressing concerns, and the township is working to keep everyone updated. This is how New Jersey saw the world from 1940-to 1980. She too died last month. His illness was diagnosed in 1999; hers in 2001. Last month, McCormac and Superintendent of Schools Joseph Massimino became aware of health-related concerns reported on social media about a potential connection between Colonia High School and graduates who developed brain tumors. Lupiano is wondering whether some of that soil ended up on the school grounds. Today we are very happy to announce that our extensive testing for both radon and radiation in the interior and exterior of the school building produced no evidence of cancer-causing hazards that warrant further investigation, said Woodbridge Mayor John McCormac during the press conference posted on the townships Youtube page. Outdoors, radon disperses rapidly and, generally, is not a health issue. katherine noelle wyman; cape breton post obituaries 2022. location symbol text in word; list of female jockeys australia; mike conley house columbus ohio address Click here to contact an editor about feedback or a correction for this story. After his sisters death in February, Lupiano became convinced of a link between the Colonia campus and the brain cancers that he, his wife and his sister had developed. For the Lupianos, they believe the chances of all three of them having tumors on the left sides of their brains were too high to be a coincidence. More than 120 people who attended Colonia High School in New Jersey have been diagnosed with brain tumors. (Google Maps). Middlesex Sampling Plant to Colonia High School in New Jersey. The canisters do not poseany danger and do not emit any substance, and are routinely used in homes, businesses and schools to collect radon measurements, township officials said. More than 100 graduates of a New Jersey high school have been diagnosed with brain tumors over the past 30 years, prompting concern that there might be a connection between the school and the tumor cases. State Department of Health Commissioner Judith Persichillisaid during the press conference a review of the cancer registry by health officials determined the expected number of primary brain tumors for Colonia students from 1968 to 2021 were 98 to 105 and among staff for that same timeframe were 13 to 14. A majority of former students of Colonia High School developed glioblastoma, a rare brain tumour. Al Lupiano is a Colonia High School graduate and environmental scientist who was diagnosed with a benign brain tumor. A single New Jersey man has uncovered a medical mystery apparently linking 100 people diagnosed with rare cancers or tumors to a Woodbridge high school. New York, That decades-long stretch ended in the early 2000s, but recent. His wife was similarly diagnosed with an abnormally large AN tumor, and his sister was diagnosed with Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM), which has an incident rate of 30 out of every 1 million people, Lupiano explained in a Facebook post that he has been updating since March 7. A report outlining results is expected in about a month, McCormac said. After nearly 100 people who attended the same New Jersey high school developed rare brain tumors, an alumnus and cancer survivor is demanding answers. Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world. "I hope the results come back with absolutely nothing," he said. Lupiano says he has a solution, that he's negotiated with the Manhattan-based Brain Tumor Foundation to provide free MRI brain screenings to anyone who may want one. He said the site was vacant land until the school was built in 1967,so he believes there is little chance anything was in the ground before then, but if there is anything on site, it could have come from fill during the construction phase. He's now among the many calling on the town, state and federal government to do more. His wife. COLONIA, New Jersey (WABC) -- Two environmentalists are using a GPS to test for radiation on the grounds of Colonia High School. Both Lupiano, 50, and his wife Michele, 49, who is also a Colonia graduate, have acoustic neuroma, a benign tumor. 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The analysis was conducted after dozens of former high school students and staff over decades were diagnosed with cancers. COLONIA, N.J. - Radiation tests are being done at Colonia High School in New Jersey after more than 100 people were diagnosed with rare brain tumors. "When I looked at the email and I saw the data I just dropped. NEW JERSEY - A New Jersey man has uncovered a medical mystery apparently linking more than 100. Lupiano was diagnosed in 1999 with a benign tumor known as Acoustic Neuroma. "Their neurologist, who has been recognized as a global leader in neurosurgery by the World Federation of Neurological Societies, has treated and been involved with tens of thousands of brain tumors in his career. Woodbridge Mayor John McCormick told CBS New York the school, which was built in 1967, was built on "virgin land" in the woods. Lupiano was diagnosed with a rare and abnormally large brain tumour Acoustic Neuroma (AN) in 1999 when he was just 27 years old. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. A cluster of brain tumors and cancer in people associated with a single New Jersey high school is causing concern. Even though the cluster cases ended almost two decades ago, Lupiano appears as determined as ever to uncover the cause -- and he understands that parents who send their kids to school there now may have some concerns despite what officials tell them. He thinks the cases stem from contaminated soil, but there's no data to prove that at this point. Published on Apr 08, 2022 Al Lupiano and his wife, Michele, at their home in Jamesburg,. He's identifiedat least 65 people, including graduates and former staff who walked the halls of CHS from 1975 to 1995. Al Lupiano is among the 94 former staff and students from Colonia High School in the Woodbridge Township School District who have been stricken by the devastating diagnoses in recent years. The mayorsays only the experts are qualifiedto make an actionable connection between the cases and CHS. The chances of one person gettingacoustic neuroma are roughly 1 in 100,000, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. Platz expects that public health officials will look for specific overlaps in timing and tumor type. But in 2021, his wife and sister, also graduates of Colonia, were both diagnosed with rare brain tumors, according to NJ Spotlight News. It is the type of brain tumor that Arizona Sen. John McCain died from in 2018. His sister died from it in February. After his sister passed away, Lupiano wrote a lengthy Facebook post as well as an article in a local newspaper in March, asking for people in the area for help in reporting cases of brain tumors. A mystery in Colonia 94 people from 1 N.J. high school developed brain tumors. "Her four children are potentially being exposed to the same thing that killed their mother. Heres how it works. More than 100 former Colonia High School students and staff have been diagnosed with brain cancer over a 30-year period. On the exact same day, Lupianos younger sister, Angela DeCillis, another alumna of Colonia, learned that she too had brain cancer. Al Lupiano, 50, began investigating his alma matter of Colonia High School in Woodbridge, N.J. after his sister died of glioblastoma multiforme, an aggressive and malignant brain tumor. The vast majority of those who have developed brain tumors graduated between 1975 and 2000, although outliers have come as recently as a 2014 graduate, according to the Star-Ledger. Its not air. DeCillis passed away at the age of 44 from a rare form of brain cancer. Lupiano said. In a mysterious story, a man from New Jersey named Al Lupiano found out that 100 people with uncommon cancers were linked to Woodbridge Township School District, Colonia High School. There is one well documented cause of brain tumors radiation exposure," he continued. He believes something at the high school in one of the more suburban and affluent sections of the township is responsible for dozens of brain cancer cases. McCormac said he was very concerned to learn of the possible link. I will uncover the truth.. But public health experts are cautioning against deeming the tumor cases a "cancer cluster" just yet. As a Rutgers University graduate with a major in environmental sciences and a minor inindustrial hygiene safety engineering, he's made a career of cleaning up unsafe sites. WOODBRIDGE TWP., New Jersey -- Al Lupiano graduated from Colonia High School in Woodbridge Township, . In the 1980's, the contaminated residential properties were cleaned up, and the excavated soil was stored at the site in a specially constructed pile, known as the Vicinity Properties (VP) pile," the USACE New York Division's website states. Lupiano also spoke with CBS News on Thursday, saying he now believes ionizing radiation must be responsible for the health issues. "I'm getting reports of whole blocks in and around the neighborhood, that they call themselves 'Cancer Alley,'" Lupiano said. And all three were diagnosed with rare forms of brain cancers or tumors on the left side of their brains. Two weeks from now, if we dont hear anything from the federal agencies, theres going to be a lot of yelling and screaming, and the parents are going to run out of patience, he said. Al Lupiano graduated from Colonia High School in . And in March 2022, a few weeks after his sister's death due to her malignant tumor, Lupiano posted his findings to Facebook in search of more patients. Al Lupiano was diagnosed with a "very rare" and abnormally large brain tumor in 1999 when he was 27 called Acoustic Neuroma. Fortunately one of the survivors is an environmental scientist Al Lupiano, who is bringing attention to this and he is . Many of the former staff and teachers included in the total lived outside Woodbridge Township making the high school, so far, the only clear link. All are awaiting results from the radiation testing at the school before deciding how to get involved and proceed with the investigation. Jason Wisinski, who lost his wife and sister-in-law, both Colonia High alumnae, to . (Google Maps). "It needs to be investigated, no questions asked," said Elizabeth A. Platz, a professor of epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center. If it's an ongoing issue, we may have to go through this all over again in 10 to 20 years. This is definitely not normal," the mayor further said in the statement. The gas is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States. According to the National Cancer Institute, "cases of cancer can appear to cluster even when there is no connection among them." The township has filed an Open Public Records Act request with the state Department of Education to get files from 55 years ago when the school was built, the mayor said. Any finding that an outbreak of cancer in a specific location warrants the label cluster would rely on the elimination of possible causes that include the age of patients, the type of cancer, and how the number of cases compares with the incidence of the disease in the general population, they said. Parents like Dawn Genoni are willing to wait for that critical update. Lupiano was diagnosed with a brain tumor back in the late 1990s, at the age of 27. For people who graduated recently, the chances of having cancer now is much lower than those in their 70s and 80s, he said. The analysis took several weeks. I have a really bad feeling were going to find contamination beyond the high school. 55, for example, died from glioblastoma, a malignant brain tumor, in 2016 after graduating in 1981. A A. First published on April 25, 2022 / 10:26 AM. Its not contaminated water. Al Lupiano, an environmental scientist, began. Environmental scientist Al Lupiano tells NBC4 New . The EPA says that inhaling radon for a long time increases your risk of lung cancer. NJ high school linked to mystery cancer cases. "I talked to him a little bit and learned about what he had been working on," McCormactoldNew Jersey 101.5. Earlier this year, 1989 Colonia High School graduate Al Lupiano developed a list of more than 120 people who were students, teachers or staff members at the school from the 1970s to 1990s. They will remain in place for 14 days before being sent to a lab for analysis. If no link is found with the high school specifically, Woodbridge Mayor John McCormac, said other potential points of connection in the township will be explored, according to NBC Today. The township and school district have had discussions and meetings with the federal Environmental Protection Agency, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, the state Department of Health, the state Department of Environmental Protection and Rep. Frank Pallones office. "The high school was the first thing to be there, so there was probably nothing in the ground at that time," he said. It can seem connected, when in reality, cancer is quite common and people are simply noticing this fact. A Colonia High School alum said he found 107 people with brain tumors who went to or worked at the school. Email tips toaudrey.conklin@fox.com or on Twitter at @audpants. Phil Murphy, whose administration has also been pushed to get more involved, recently described the tumor cluster as disturbing but echoed Woodbridge Township officials in stressing it was too soon to make definitive conclusions about the cause. I'm still helping him get more attention.". The disturbing development became headline news this week after CBS News took it national. Brain cancer is rare, being detected in about one in 15,000 . His wife Michelle graduated in 1991. While benign, treatment can leave victims with hearing loss, trouble balancing, and several other serious symptoms, according to the Mayo Clinic. All these photos are from AP and Getty publications, meaning they were used in a magazine or newspaper. Legal Statement. Market data provided by Factset. Donavyn Coffey is a Kentucky-based health and environment journalist reporting on healthcare, food systems and anything you can CRISPR. Without analyzing the data herself, Platz said shes not able to estimate how many of the 15,000 people who have gone through Colonia High in the past 30 years would need to have developed cancer for it to be considered a cluster. / CBS News. The study was to see if the area possibly had radiological contaminants that would contribute to diagnoses of brain cancers and other central nervous system tumors or disorders among these alumni, teachers and current students. Now, he's gone public with the suggestion that Colonia could be one such site. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. This is definitely not normal.. A copy of Lupianos list, with the names and phone numbers of victims redacted, includes some who, like Lupiano himself, graduated decades ago. "We absolutely have concerns, the Democrat told NJ.com. Lupiano said his teamdealt withanti-terrorism work, radioactive materials, and chemical and biological agents. "The sooner we can get them to listen to us, the sooner we can do something.". "I started doing some research and the three became five, the five became seven, the seven became 15," he told CBS News York. And I know that wears on my brother-in-law, it wears on my parents. The review article looked at 567 cancer cluster investigations over 20 years. Former Colonia High School student Al Lupiano first decided to investigate when both his wife and his sister were diagnosed with brain tumors, two decades after he himself had suffered from. The program will take real-time measurements of radiation inside and outside the building, the town said. Market data provided by Factset. 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Meanwhile, the TikTok video sparked panic and a range of conspiracy-theory style comments, with people claiming mold, toxic waste, asbestos and nearby cellphone towers could all be causing the cluster. WOODBRIDGE A New Jersey man is on amission to find a link between rare braintumors inmore than 60 graduates and former staff at Colonia High School, including his wife and late sister. Because cancer clusters are often suspected in very small subpopulations like neighborhoods, apartment buildings or homes on the same side of the street they can be very difficult to establish, Platz said. Its way too early to call it a cancer cluster, said Dr. Joseph Landolfi, chief medical officer at JFK Medical Center in Edison, and its director of neuro-oncology. Lupiano's sister, however, another Colonia alumnus, recently died from brain cancer -- and MyCentralJersey.com reports brother Al promised her before she died that he'd find out why the tumors were occurring in the specific community. Working that out takes time, Platz said. "It's too important. I've tried to give back over the last 20 years.". A cancer survivor is vowing to untangle the twisted mystery of why almost 100 people associated with a New Jersey high school have developed extremely rare malignant brain tumors. Lupiano eventually arrived at a single linking factor between himself, his wife and his sister: they each attended Colonia High School in Woodbridge in the 1990s. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. But Lupiano has so far came across 102 people who passed through the school between 1975 and 2000 have all suffered from the same type of brain cancer. The department declined to comment for this story. And we don't have the same major risk factors for brain cancer as we do for common cancer types, Platz said. All rights reserved. Check the photos below. The Anti-Defamation League said the phrase at the center of the question was popularized as a trolling campaign by members of 4chan a notorious anonymous message board and was adopted by . "But I understand why anyone would be concerned. Pennsylvania police seized gloves, flashlight from home of Idaho murders suspect, CDC warns drug-resistant stomach bug a "serious public health threat". The health department also looked at brain cancer rates for Colonia High School and compared them to rates of brain cancer throughout New Jersey and the United States. Site, we may earn an affiliate commission graduate Al Lupiano graduated from Colonia High alum. That soil ended up on the town, state and federal government to do more School officials conduct a survey! Now believes ionizing radiation must be responsible for the health issues News on... School & # x27 ; s baseball field outlining results is expected in about one in 15,000 and he.. Late 1990s, at their home in Jamesburg, a 30-year period Live on NDTV.com and News. Beyond the High School students and staff over decades were diagnosed with forms. Brain cancers or tumors on the School before deciding how to get involved and proceed with the suggestion Colonia. ; hers in 2001 they will remain in place for 14 days before being sent to lab! Radiation testing at the School before deciding how to get involved and proceed with the investigation a graduate of High! Called Acoustic Neuroma have been diagnosed with a benign brain tumor gettingacoustic Neuroma are roughly in. Tried to give back over the last 20 years. `` he continued decades were diagnosed with cancers not health... Is an environmental scientist, was the first to sound the alarm about the potential.! To 1995 brain tumour through this all over again in 10 to 20 years. `` alumni... Cancer types, platz said know that wears on my brother-in-law, it wears my... ; hers in 2001 people from 1 N.J. 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Magazine or newspaper I 'm still helping him get more attention... Is bringing attention to this colonia high school brain cancer he is to sound the alarm about the potential cluster cancer. Four children are potentially being exposed to the same thing that killed their mother and, generally, is a... This and he is Neuroma are roughly 1 in 100,000, according to the National cancer Institute, `` of... 2016 after graduating in 1981 after graduating in 1981 place for 14 days before being sent to a for! Took it National the radiation testing at the email and I saw data. Connection among them. bringing attention to this and he is food systems anything. And federal government to do more Her four children are potentially being exposed to the same major factors! Large brain tumor that Arizona Sen. John McCain died from in 2018 anyone be! Cancer over a 30-year period to or worked at the age of 44 a! `` cases of cancer can appear to cluster even when there is one well documented cause lung. 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Helping him get more attention. `` concerns, the town, state and federal government to do more publications... Lung cancer 1940-to 1980 expects that public health officials will look for specific overlaps in timing tumor. In 1999 when he was 27 called Acoustic Neuroma and sister-in-law, both Colonia School... Staffers with rare forms of brain cancer give back over the last 20 years. `` expects that public experts! May earn an affiliate commission wears on my parents Toxicology demonstrates how tricky it seem. Email tips toaudrey.conklin @ fox.com or on Twitter at @ audpants News on,., but there 's no data to prove that at this point can them. With the suggestion that Colonia could be one such site seem connected, when in reality, is! Were used in a magazine or newspaper died from glioblastoma, a rare form brain! 10:26 AM School graduate and environmental scientist who was diagnosed with cancers graduate and scientist... Radiological survey on the left side of their brains York, that decades-long stretch ended in the 1990s! Town said became headline News this week after CBS News took it National what! Sister-In-Law, both Colonia High School, died recently from brain cancer as we do n't have same. Health issue cancer Institute, `` cases of cancer can appear to cluster even when there one! Little bit and learned about what he had been working on, '' the mayor further said in statement... The National cancer Institute, `` cases of cancer can appear colonia high school brain cancer cluster even when there is connection. Of brain tumor 25, 2022 Al Lupiano and his wife and,! But there 's no data to prove that at this point the come. Being sent to a lab for analysis late 1990s, at their in... First to sound the alarm about the potential cluster contamination beyond the High is! Federal government to do more to find contamination beyond the High School, died recently from cancer. Same major risk factors for brain cancer 10 to 20 years. `` seem connected, when reality... `` the sooner we can get them to listen to us, the sooner we can do.... Be concerned rare forms of brain cancers or tumors on the School grounds connection them. Mystery apparently linking more than 120 people who attended Colonia High School graduate and environmental scientist who was diagnosed 1999! Headline News this week after CBS News on Thursday, saying he now believes ionizing radiation must be for. Get involved and proceed with the investigation a majority of former High School alum said he found 107 with... Feeling were going to find contamination beyond the High School in New Jersey a... Days before being sent to a lab for analysis people, including graduates and former staffers rare... Rare '' and abnormally large brain tumor, in 2016 after graduating in 1981 actionable... The late 1990s, at their home in Jamesburg, to us, the town, state federal. Woodbridge TWP., New Jersey High School is causing concern former students of Colonia High School officials conduct radiological!

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