The 50-year-old claims the diseases could be traced. Is it a cancer cluster or just a coincidence? Asking them to be patient for several more weeks is unacceptable. Lupiano was diagnosed with a rare and abnormally large brain tumour Acoustic Neuroma (AN) in 1999 when he was just 27 years old. They are also both graduates of Colonia High School. Robert Miller The investigation was jumpstarted after it was discovered more 122 people once connected to. Middlesex County's Colonia High School, located in Woodbridge, has made national headlines in recent weeks after over 100 former students and faculty were found to have been diagnosed with. For her part, Komorek said she took it upon herself to do the independent testing for my own peace of mind, to sleep at night, and for my girls to remain at the school., I was hoping it was going to come back negative, she added. ', Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts. 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. She loves a good music pun and wakes up very very early. Two hours later, we received information that my wife also had a primary brain tumor, said Lupiano. Topics you care about, straight to your inbox. That is what Al Lupiano, Colonia High School (CHS) Class of 1989, wants to find out after . They are testing the grounds outside and inside of the high school inside. Advocates, for months, implored state and local officials to undertake more testing. ", ALSO READ | Onlookers urged police to charge into TX school: 'Go in there! Dr. Marc Siegel discusses brain tumors that emerged among former Colonia High School students on 'Tucker Carlson Tonight.' Local and federal environmental agencies say they are assisting. BSN or must obtain within 3 years. New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, New Jersey Department of Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli, Lawrence Township League of Women Voters announces 2022 leadership award winners, No criminal charges for Hillsborough police officer in 2021 fatal shooting, Vigil marks one-year anniversary of Ukrainian War. His wife was diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma, which is a benign brain tumor and is the exact same brain tumor that Al Lupiano himself was diagnosed with 22 years ago. McCormac says last Saturday, environmentalists placed random canisters inside the school to collect air samples. United States Department of Environmental Protection. My list quickly started multiplyingit all seemed to be linked back to the high school. Colonia High School graduateAl Lupiano talks to @KatyTurNBC about gathering names of over 80 individuals with rare brain tumors who attended the school. Since March . This all came to fruition in August of last year, and it just startled Lupiano. "I started doing some research and the three became five, the five became seven, the seven became 15," said Lupiano. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. A cluster of over 100 rare brain tumors in the past 30 years sparks a health inspection at Colonia High School in New Jersey. We will continue to keep you informed as we develop a plan of action based on the advice of our experts.. The testing was prompted after township officials learned of various social media posts related to several instances of brain tumors and brain cancer among students and faculty of CHS from . Dating back decades, newly detailed reports of more than 100 cases of brain tumors among former students and staff at Colonia High School in Woodbridge have raised obvious concerns. CNN's Ana Cabrera speaks to Al Lupiano, a former student. Both parents of children in school and current teachers and staff deserve answers. In an acknowledgement of the significance of Komoreks findings, the district sent out a statement to parents and guardians Monday evening. That's what makes the numbers staggering," says Lupiano. My MIL died of lung cancer. $4 Million Settlement Mass Torts $203 Million Class Action Financial Services $75 Million Class Action Mass Torts $200 Million Class Action Environmental scientists are investigating reports of increased instances of brain tumors at Colonia High School in New Jersey. CHS is the one link of all three of them. It's not air. The testers are specifically testing for radon levels in the air after 1989 Colonia High School grad Al Lupiano proposed this theory that he found an unusually high number of brain. Its not something done to us due to bad habits, Lupiano told CBS News. There have been some outlier cases. The municipal council in Woodbridge, which oversees Colonia High School, approved an emergency contract earlier this month to start radiological testing of the grounds at the high school. Angela has four daughters who have or will go to Colonia High School. All of the cases have ties to Colonia High School, either as students or employees. By Sean Adams, WCBS Newsradio 880. "We're going to test and hope we find nothing," McCormac previously said. He made a public plea on Facebook to anyone from the school who was diagnosed with primary brain tumors. Lupianos wife was also diagnosed with a brain tumor, the NY Post reported. "Woodbridge Township contacted the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the CDC, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) (which is part of CDC), and the state Department of Health last week, and we've begun initial discussions with them.". The city of Woodbridge, NJ is conducting an investigation after more than 100 former students and staff at the local Colonia High School were found to have developed brain . What treatments are available for the afflicted? So that has already begun. "It's alarming because there are just so many people with a tumor - malignant or benign, and it's serious. What I find alarming is theres truly only one environmental link to primary brain tumors and thats ionizing radiation. The same day my sister was diagnosed (August 2021), I received the devastating news my wife Michele (nee Zawada) also has a very large (3.0 cm), very rare brain tumor called an Acoustic Neuroma (aka Vestibular Schwannoma) on her left side. Federal agencies are also assisting in the investigation. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Komorek, Lupiano and several other parents criticized the assessment which did not include taking soil or water samples for not being thorough enough to put their minds at ease, despite assurances from state Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Shawn LaTourette. 94 people from Colonia High School in Woodbridge, New Jersey are part of a cancer cluster of still unknown origin. Scott Faytok | For NJ Advance Media. I pray we find answers. Lupiano says that most of the people on his list were at the high school prior to 1997. Several types of primary brain tumors, including cancerous forms like glioblastoma and noncancerous yet debilitating masses such as acoustic neuromas, haemangioblastomas and meningiomas, have been diagnosed, according to the outlet. Our sister station WABC-TV has reached out to the EPA for comment. Please consider subscribing to NJ.com. Columns with an asterisk or 'N' indicate there was no data or it was suppressed to protect student privacy. Woodbridge Township has contracted environmental engineering firm T&M Associates to carry out radiation tests at Colonia High School to investigate a possible link between the school and the reported brain tumors, according to New York news outlet WABC. The township announced results of an investigation. Colonia High School is now the subject of radiation detecting research. All of the cases have ties to Colonia High School, either as students or employees. Al Lupiano, an environmental scientist and a 1989 graduate of the N.J. high school began investigating Colonia High School in Woodbridge when he realized many others with ties to the school suffered the rare brain tumors, just like he did, 20 years ago. How many people do we mean here? "When I started looking into it, I quickly amassed 15 of our classmates with these rare brain tumors," he told NewsNation. "It's certainly concerning because the rate of primary brain tumors is certainly higher than what we would expect in the general population," said Dr. Arif Kamal, Chief Patient Officer at the American Cancer Society. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Janice's sister Chery Black also died from brain cancer in 2015. The results will then be reviewed by federal agencies including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Environmental Protection Agency, plus the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Health. Woodbridge Mayor John McCormac immediately and responsibly got engaged. He found a total of 104 former students and faculty, and about half were cancerous. Superintendent Joseph Massiminio the district worked with representatives from the state Department of Environmental Protection, the state Department of Health, the federal Environmental Protection Agency, Center for Disease Control, and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry to discuss the matter, and that national firms T&M Associates and Cabrera Services were tasked with collecting data and conducting the necessary tests. Kamal added that there needs to be a full investigation to understand if these cancers are linked, and if there's a specific cause. It has been lightly edited for clarity. Earlier this year, Al Lupiano, an environmental scientist and Colonia High School graduate, discovered more than 115 people who spent time at the school had a rare brain tumor. Copyright 2023 WABC-TV. We have to really take a look at it," said Woodbridge Township Mayor John McCormac. A few weeks ago, we very suddenly and tragically lost my 44-year-old sister Angela (CHS-95) to a very rare and highly aggressive malignant glioma brain tumor (Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM)) discovered on her left side, he wrote in the newsletter. An alumnus of Colonia High School in Woodbridege, N.J. is investigating his former high school, claiming he has counted 115 people who attended or worked there to have had a rare brain. He was diagnosed 20 years ago. He is keeping a list. When it didnt happen, Komorek who earned a joint degree in environmental science from Rutgers and New Jersey Institute of Technology and specializes in air, ground water and soil contamination took matters into her own hands. In a statement to CBS News, Lupiano said he is anxiously awaiting the results of the two-week-long radiological survey which concluded this weekend and he anticipates he will receive the results in weeks. Earlier this year, Colonia graduate Al Lupiano, also an environmental scientist, discovered more than 100 teachers and alums of the school who reported having brain tumors, drawing international attention to the community and sparking state and local investigations. "I started doing some research and the three became five, the five became seven, the seven became 15," Lupiano said. The environmental testing is expected to last a month. Rohit Ranjan. The statewide graduation rate fell slightly, from 91% in 2019-20 to 90.6%. "My wife was awesome, and I think about her every day, I talk to her all the time," Wisinski said. Both sisters were graduates of Colonia High School. All three were diagnosed with a brain tumor. NEW JERSEY - A New Jersey man has uncovered a medical mystery apparently linking more than 100 people . Mar 30, 2022 The Wanted's Tom Parker Dies at 33 After Brain Tumor Battle Al Lupiano, a graduate of the high school, believes there's a link between Colonia High School and brain. Part Time, Per diem position. Youre 98.6, youre fine, go home. What steps are investigators taking to try to figure this out? She made it five years.". Both had graduated from Colonia High School, the news outlet reported. If you were affected or have a tumor or rare cancer, I need your assistance," his Facebook post read. Find NJ.com on Faceboo. Earlier this spring . Last year, Lupianos wife and sister also developed brain tumors, as first reported byCBS New York. Last year, his sister, also an alumna of Colonia High, was diagnosed with a primary brain tumor, a stage 4 glioblastoma, he told CBS New York. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Friday, April 22, 2022. Dr. Joseph Massimino, superintendent of Woodbridge Township School District has commented that they are waiting for more details and formulating next steps, in coordination with New Jersey environmental agencies. Stanmyre: Right now, the number this week is up to 117 people who have been found to have a primary brain tumor of some sorts, according to data from Al Lupiano, who is the Colonia graduate who has kind of spearheaded all of this. All the affected attended Colonia High School in Woodbridge, dating back decades. Alumni links 65 rare brain tumor cases to NJ high school, investigation launched. ABC7 New York 24/7 Eyewitness News Stream, Onlookers urged police to charge into TX school: 'Go in there! "In addition, DEP's further review does not indicate sources of environmental exposures of concern to public health. Lupiano has been able to confirm that 94 former students and staff of Colonia High School had developed brain tumors, as per coverage in New York Post. They learned of their tumors just eight days apart, while Janice was pregnant with her and Jason's only child. The community is absolutely unnerved and absolutely terrified by what's going on here. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. He received his . On March 29, 2022, Lupiano wrote an article in a local newsletter, asking for help to identify people who developed the brain tumors, to collect data to plan further steps for answers to a probably cause. The environmental assessment study at Colonia High School was recently completed, in response to allegations that suggested the school had radiological hazards that contributed to diagnoses. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. 3 min read. But public health experts are cautioning against deeming the tumor cases a "cancer cluster" just yet. The onset of brain tumors in more than one hundred people who attended or worked at Colonia High School in New Jersey has continued to baffle experts. No one knows exactly what it is. This is when a low-level radioactive rock was found and removed from the school grounds. A New Jersey town is planning to conduct environmental testing at Colonia High School after a resident discovered dozens of people connected to the school had developed rare brain tumors. He said in 40 years of neurology, he had never heard of a married couple that both had the same type of primary brain tumor. "There's lots and lots of people calling me, saying, 'Look, I didn't go to the high school, but I live a mile away, and we call our block cancer alley,'" he told Fox News. Woodbridge Township Mayor John McCormac told WABC that the situation was "alarming because there are just so many people with a tumormalignant or benign, and it's serious.". Lupiano said he started searching for instances of Colonia High graduates having brain tumors and was stunned to discover 15 people in total, with two newly discovered cases pending further . A high school in Woodbridge Township, New Jersey, is being investigated by environmental experts after reports of more than 100 former students and staff being diagnosed with brain tumors. I just felt like there were a lot of unanswered questions regarding the school, Komorek told NJ Advance Media. He shared a 2020 Emmy for the PBS NewsHour series Stopping a Killer Pandemic and in 2019 received a George FosterPeabodyAwardfor the PBS NewsHour series The Plastic Problem. Nsikan has also worked for NPR, Science News Magazine, Science Magazine, KUSP Central Coast Public Radio, the Santa Cruz Sentinel and as a writer at the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University. The mother of two Colonia High students who believed not enough environmental testing was done in the aftermath of reports of a possible brain tumor cluster connected to the school told NJ Advance . His name is on it, along with his wife and late sister. As a scientist, I want to find answers. 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. Just simple math in my head having a husband and wife with this tumor, which arent related and then to have my sister with a blastoma, I knew something was wrong, Lupiano says. It will take about two weeks. In a Facebook post, Lupiano said the battle over whats affecting hundreds of CHS alumni, teachers and staff is not over with the help of renowned doctors and scientists., He called the data presented at the press conference flawed.. 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