It "was an entry point for African uranium ores known as pitchblende" that were "imported for use in the nations early atomic energy program, were assayed at the Middlesex Sampling Plant and then shipped to other sites for processing," according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) New York Division. In April, Woodbridge approved environmental testing at the school, but those results won't be made available until the end of June. All are awaiting results from the radiation testing at the school before deciding how to get involved and proceed with the investigation. DeCillis passed away at the age of 44 from a rare form of brain cancer. In the United States, the rate of new cases of brain cancer or other nervous system cancer is 6.3 cases per 100,000 people per year, according to the National Institutes of Health. 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. The disturbing development became headline news this week after CBS News took it national. Her work has appeared in Scientific American, Wired UK, Popular Science and Youth Today, among others. Rob Laumbach, a Rutgers University professor of public health. More than 100 people from the same high school have been diagnosed with brain cancer and it is feared soil contaminated with uranium used in the first atomic bomb made them ill. But the growing number of victims both alive and dead on the list dont constitute the evidence that public health experts need to determine that Colonia is a cancer cluster, said Dr. His illness was diagnosed in 1999; hers in 2001. She worked for 16 years to help other rising nurses at Rutgers and RWJ Barnabas Health. "We can get in there today and take air, water and soil samples and have results back the same day," Lupiano said. 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. At the time of the CBS interview in late March, Lupiano claimed to have confirmed 65 cases of rare brain tumors, all affecting people who either attended or worked at Colonia High School. The brain tumor cases, appearing over a thirty-year period, are a significant medical mystery that has caused alarm for experts. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. 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. Back in March, Colonia High graduate Al Lupiano posted his theory about possible links between brain tumors diagnoses among 1990s and early 2000s graduates of Colonia High and since then, he gathered the names of at least 110 grads with brain tumors, according to Fox News Digital. 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. 55, for example, died from glioblastoma, a malignant brain tumor, in 2016 after graduating in 1981. "The rates are actually consistent in New Jersey with the United States," McGreevy said. Lupianowould liketheir investigators to come in over spring break so that students are not disturbed. 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. The same day his sister was diagnosed, his wife, Michele, a 1991 Colonia High School graduate, was diagnosed with a large acoustic neuroma, a rare brain tumor which is life-threatening if left untreated. "If there's a unique exposure, we would expect a unique cancer type," Platz said. "I started doing some research and the three became five, the five became seven, the seven became 15," he told CBS News York. Lupiano said his teamdealt withanti-terrorism work, radioactive materials, and chemical and biological agents. . The mayorsays only the experts are qualifiedto make an actionable connection between the cases and CHS. Hours after Deciliis got her diagnosis, Lupiano's wife Michelereceived similar news. Asking them to be patient for several more weeks is unacceptable. Immediately I knew exactly what I was looking at. Frequently, in hazmat, you never find it in the first shot," Lupiano said. Patients would be injected with a small bead the size of a pinhead - and this bead would act as a "factory," secreting a protein that gets the body's white blood cells to destroy the tumor and fight cancer. (Gosselin Funeral Home) In August 2021, DeCillis received her diagnosis of Grade 4 glioblastoma multiforme, an aggressive, rare, and deadly form of brain cancer. Market data provided by Factset. Colonia High School in New Jersey has seen more than 100 students and staff diagnosed with cancer over the last 30 years. T&M Associates of Middletown and its team of environmentalists are scheduled to begin collecting data at the high school this weekend by placing radon canisters throughout the building to collect air samples, according to township officials. Audrey Conklin is a digital reporter for Fox News Digital and FOX Business. Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. What It Said, "Playing For Country": Gavaskar Blasts Gill For Calling Physio Mid-Over, Inside "World's Most Ultra-Luxury Resort", At $100,000 A Night, "I'm Not Their Target, You": Manish Sisodia's Resignation Letter, Video: Delhi Building's Dramatic Collapse After Fire, "Will Continue To Impose Sanctions On Russia": US Treasury Secretary, Chicago's 1st Openly Gay, Black Woman Mayor Loses Re-Election, Will Blow Up Mukesh Ambani, Amitabh Bachchan Bungalows, Caller To Cops, Think Tank CPR's Foreign Funding Licence Halted: "Will Explore Recourse", F1 Legend Jenson Button Breaks Guinness World Record. Its not air. The work will be done in cooperation with Woodbridge School District. His sister Angela Decillis. Last year, his wife who also attended Colonia was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor. The investigation will consider very granular data on graduates, like their occupations, family history and other activities that could affect their exposures. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. According to American Association of Neurological Surgeons, glioblastoma is normally extremely rare with an incidence of 3.21 per 100,000 people. A cluster of brain tumors and cancer in people associated with a single New Jersey high school is causing concern. Since last August, Lupiano has spent countless hours trying to find other people linked to CHS with primary brain cancers. A Colonia High School alum said he found 107 people with brain tumors who went to or worked at the school. This is terrific news for the current students of Colonia High School and their parents, who worried about their safety, along with current staff members, and is also great news for all former students who attended and staff who worked at Colonia High School.. There's no proof yet that anything at CHS is the cause. To find something like this is a significant discovery, Dr. Sumul Raval, one of New Jerseys top neuro-oncologists, told the outlet. "The high school was the first thing to be there, so there was probably nothing in the ground at that time," he said. An investigation has been launched after more than 100 people who attended a high school in New Jersey appeared to contract a rare cancer. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, I make $80k selling nudes to pay for cancer treatment men love bald look, Jimmy Carters niece says former president still has some time in him, Experts say youve been storing potatoes wrong this whole time and shut down cancer rumors, Joe Exotics doctors suspect he has bladder cancer but hes refusing treatment: report. WOODBRIDGE The township has approved an emergency contract of $221,350 for an engineering firm to conduct radiological assessments at Colonia High School, following a 1989 graduate's research indicating a possible link between the school and brain tumor cases among former students and staff. But as the study continues, a number of people in the community are looking for some kind of reassurance. Shehad been dealing with hearing loss for several years. 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. Jon Hurdle, a freelance writer who regularly reports on water and other environmental issues, is part of the NJ Spotlight COVID-19 reporting team. "It's too important. Caitlin O'Kane is a digital content producer covering trending stories for CBS News and its good news brand, The Uplift. Calls are growing for state and federal authorities to look into why more than 100 people have been diagnosed with brain tumors since attending the school as students, faculty or staff in past decades. Since . Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. "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. To get unlimited access, please subscribe or activate your digital account today. 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. "Dozens of people have asked me to help them find a way to have a brain scan since they have been having signs and symptoms something may be wrong, but due to lack of insurance or not being able to afford the deductible, have not been able to have an MRI scan," Lupiano wrote in a Facebook post. "I will not rest until I have answers," the 50-year-old told NJ.com. That decades-long stretch ended in the early 2000s, but recent. Over 100 former students and staff from a New Jersey high school have been diagnosed with brain tumors. There are noeasily available records from the land before CHS was built in 1967, according to McCormac. The plant received uranium, thorium and beryllium ores between the 1940s and 1967, which is the same year Colonia High School was built. That's when Lupiano started looking into the connection. DeCillis's four teenage daughters attend Colonia schools in Woodbridge. In 1999 when Lupiano was 27, he too was diagnosed with a large acoustic neuroma on the left side of his brain. 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. I will not rest until I have answers, Lupiano, 50, declared in an interview with NJ.com and the Star-Ledger on Thursday. His wife. The Department of Health will work with the federal Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry and will conduct a public health assessment and evaluate the potential for health effects. Now, he's gone public with the suggestion that Colonia could be one such site. Why? But in 2021, his wife and sister, also. The cause hasn't been discovered yet, but some researchers suspect . Lupiano's quest for information took him to Facebook last month, and that list of people who went to or worked at Colonia High School - and have a primary brain tumor - is now closing in on 100 cases. 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