For Joe Contrucci, 28, less than two months have passed since his doctors diagnosed the longtime Brick resident with a rare form of cancer. That was two days before Thanksgiving.
In that time, Contrucci has set up treatment and medical visits for stage 4 adenocarcinoma of the lung, discovered after a biopsy. Days earlier Contrucci had a seizure that sent him to the hospital, and it was originally thought to result from infectious disease. But after results came back, the cancer was found to have metastasized to the brain and was inoperable, his family said.
Over the holiday season, friends and family have set up events to support Contrucci, such as a fundraiser at the River Rock on Route 70, and a GoFundMe page to accept donations, here.
Contrucci's parents created the GoFundMe campaign, and on the donation page explained the need their 28 year-old son faces.
"After more tests and more appointments with doctors for second opinions, their unanimous opinion was that whole brain radiation and then a search for clinical trials offered Joe his best option for treatment. No longer able to be alone and to care for himself, Joe moved back home with us (his parents) and his 4 younger brothers to help care for him. To give up his apartment, leave his job as a welder, and to no longer be able to drive was hard for a young man who had never been sick since he had chicken pox as a little boy," wrote his parents.
"We are trying to help raise funds for Joe, to help pay the ever mounting medical bills that arrive daily, to pay for travel in and out of the NYC and Philadelphia for doctors and treatment, prescriptions, and special foods and medical equipment. We are trying to help Joe as much as we can financially, but with 3 boys in college and 2 of Joe's brother's already chronically ill our funds are, sadly, limited," wrote his parents.
So far, more than $1,300 is raised, but the GoFundMe campaign has a $7,500 goal.
The 2004 Brick Memorial graduate is finding friends coming to his aid in unique ways, such as a campaign by Emily Bradford to garner attention for Contrucci.
"For my birthday this year, instead of allowing dozens of friends to post 'Happy Birthday' over and over again on my wall, I am going to turn off that ability. Instead, I am going to write a short post about Joe, link to his donation page, and ask that everyone share, like, and comment on this one post. Also, donate to joe, if you are able," Bradford said.
As far away as Westchester, N.Y., friends have been organizing events to raise money to cover Contrucci's treatment costs. A Westchester ice cream shop, The Blue Pig, donated a portion of sales earlier this month.
The GoFundMe donation page is just four days old, but has already found 30 supporters donating $1,300 and more. To learn more, visit the page, here.
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