- Al Lupiano knew there was a link when he, his wife, and his sister, all were diagnosed with rare brain cancer.
- Lupiano created a Facebook group for alumni of his New Jersey high school, People reported.
- Now experts are trying to understand why almost 100 alumni of the school were diagnosed with rare brain tumors.
Environmental scientists are trying to figure out why close to 100 alumni of the same New Jersey high school developed rare brain cancer, People reported.
At least 94 people who graduated or worked at Colonia High School in Woodbridge, New Jersey, have been diagnosed with rare brain tumors.
T+M Associates, an environmental engineering firm was asked to investigate a link between the school and brain cancer after growing concern in the Woodbridge Township, WABC reported.
People reported that Environmental scientist Al Lupiano was diagnosed when he was 27 in the late 1990s. Years later both his wife and his sister, both alumni would be diagnosed with brain cancer, hours apart in August 2021, Lupiano told CBS New York.
"I had told my sister from the very beginning that there was too much of a coincidence that me, my wife and her all have the same tumor," Lupiano told WABC.
His sister died in February, and he began questioning if there was a link to the high school and created a Facebook group to see if other people tied to the school also got tumors. He found close to 100.
He's working with local officials to figure out the cause.
"What I find alarming is there's truly only one environmental link to primary brain tumors and that's ionizing radiation. It's not contaminated water. It's not air. It's not something in soil," he told CBS. "It's not something done to us due to bad habits."
People reported that local officials contacted the state Department of Health, Department of Environmental Protection, and the Federal Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry, and are awaiting the next steps.
WABC reported that environmental testing would last a month, and the school would remain open.
Current students told WABC that they're concerned.
"We're just going to wait to find out. Obviously, everyone's praying and hoping for the best," Colonia High School Junior, Julia Pagnozzi told WABC.