Help Sandro Fight Cancer and Win

When my neighbor Sandro Bruni, 21, headed back to his senior year of college at Ohio Wesleyan this past September, nobody would have predicted that within weeks, this dynamic, healthy wrestler would be diagnosed with cancer and unable to walk. Because of this life-altering health crisis, Sandro and his family need prayers, support, and love.

They'll also also need financial help to get through this unexpected and devastating medical crisis that’s just beginning. Sandro had an aggressive and malignant tumor removed from his upper spinal cord. He now faces months (and potentially years) of treatment, including acute rehabilitation and cancer therapy. (You can read more about Sandro’s story below.)

Sandro’s family needs immediate financial help for expenses not covered by insurance, such as:

Sandro is a fighter, and his family is doing everything they can to make sure he can emerge from these challenging circumstances strong and healthy.

Please help if you can. No amount is too small (or too big).

Thank you,

Toni Lansbury (Friend and neighbor of Sandro & family)

Sandro’s Story

Sandro, a Brookline High School 2020 graduate, was in pain when he returned to college in Ohio, so his wrestling team’s trainer quickly found a neurologist to see him. Seeing the results of an MRI, the MRI technician escorted him immediately to the ER, and his mom, Jennifer, caught the next flight there, just in time to meet with the hospital’s neurosurgeon.

The doctor confirmed that Sandro had a tumor on his upper spinal cord and told Jennifer that only two surgeons in the country would be able to handle such a difficult operation—one of them at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, near the family’s home in Brookline. The doctor also urged Sandro and Jennifer to act quickly, saying that the tumor needed to come out within two weeks.

A few days later, Sandro returned home, and he and the family met with the neurosurgeon at MGH. Sandro was admitted immediately and soon underwent a lengthy (9+ hours) and complicated but successful surgery to remove what the surgeon observed to be an aggressive tumor.

Though Sandro was able to move his arms and a leg post-surgery, what turned out to be a blood clot discovered at the site of his surgery nine days later had begun to affect his lower body and required emergency surgery to remove. This left Sandro unable to walk, and with limited sensation below the chest. Biopsy results revealed the tumor to have been a Diffuse Midline Glioma (DMG, mutation H3K27M), a very rare, aggressive, and malignant type of tumor for which there is no well-established effective treatment.

With his mile-wide smile and great spirit, Sandro, a Brookline High School and Ohio Wesleyan University wrestler has a long road to recovery. His family (mom Jen, stepdad Scott, dad Anthony, stepmom Lori, and nana Helena) have been by his side, cheering him on since day one of his ordeal. Their lives have been impacted in every way, including their ability to work or attend to most other parts of their lives.

Sandro is expected to remain at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital through early December 2023, working hard to recover from the impact of his spinal cord surgery. He’ll also receive cancer treatments at MGH—radiation, likely followed by chemotherapy. He and his family are waiting to find out if he will be accepted at one of the promising immunotherapy clinical trials located around the US, which would take the place of chemotherapy.

About Sandro

Sandro is a wonderful young man, loved by many. A rising senior at Ohio Wesleyan University, he’s majoring in environmental science with a minor in history, and is on the school’s wrestling team. Though currently on medical leave, he intends to complete his senior year beginning in fall 2024. At Brookline High School (’20), Sandro played football and wrestled for four years.

While in college, Sandro had summer internships at ACE Solar in North Andover MA, and on the Methodist Theological School’s sustainable farm in Delaware OH. In past years, he worked summers and part-time in Brookline for Lockwood Construction Company and Connolly Hardware.

Sandro's Family

Sandro is fortunate to have two sets of loving parents, who are all collaborating closely to support him through the challenges he’s facing with spinal cord recovery and cancer treatment.

Sandro’s dad, Anthony, is a fiber cable splicer at Verizon, where he’s worked for 27 years, first in New York City, at Two World Trade Center and as a Ground Zero worker for two years after September 11. Anthony now lives in Weymouth with his wife and Sandro’s stepmom Lori. Lori, a true “Earth Angel,” is a kindergarten Montessori teacher and is also studying at divinity school to be a chaplain.

Sandro’s mom, Jennifer, is a Senior UX and marketing writer for Santander Bank. She also volunteers for More Than Words in Boston. Her husband and Sandro’s stepdad, Scott, leads Longwood Energy Group, a consulting firm advising clients in energy economics, policy, and operations. He is also an elected town meeting member for the town of Brookline MA.

Thank you so much for reading this, and for your support. Any amount you can give would make a huge difference for Sandro's family.

Toni Lansbury

Family friend & neighbor