Events will help teen recovering from cancer

EAST BRUNSWICK - If anyone can use a night out at the Stress Factory comedy club, it is Tommie Lukowski.

The 18-year-old township resident has been fighting cancer for more than a year, and though it is a struggle, he manages to keep a positive attitude.

"I'm very excited about [the event], because I'm a big fan of comedy and I love to laugh, so I think this is something that will take my mind off a lot," Tommie said.

The April 27 comedy show at the New Brunswick club is set up to raisemore than Tommie's spirits. Robyn and Bob Herbst, close friends of the Lukowski family, have started a nonprofit organization to help with the mounting costs of medical bills for Tommie's ongoing treatment. The Stress Factory showis the first of several fundraising events they have planned.

Robyn, who attended high school with Tommie's mother Patti, said the family's medical bills amount to $100,000 or more, and are increasing by the day.

It all started in September of last year. About two weeks into classes at Middlesex County College, Tommie went to the doctor because he could not straighten his arm. The cause was a tumor, later found to be malignant.

"It was less than a month ... and we went from a lump on his arm to finding out he needed chemotherapy," Patti said.

The impact of such news is never easy, but it wasmade evenmore difficult because of what the Lukowskis had dealt with nine months earlier- the loss of a husband and father. Tommie had found his father's body after a massive heart attack claimed the man's life.

"We were pretty devastated, especially after what we had gone through," Patti said.

Tommie had to drop out of his college courses by doctors' orders, not to return until 2009. His extensive involvement with the fire department and Buddy Ball sports program were also forced to hiatus.

After three months of chemotherapy, Tommie underwent 13 hours of surgery on Jan. 30. Along with removing his elbow joint, doctors took out part of Tommie's humerus bone and tricep, replacing them with a metal joint and muscle from his back, according to Patti. Once fully healed, he is expected to have 90 percent of his normal arm movement.

"Going into the surgery, he wasn't sure if he was going to be losing his arm," Robyn said.

Though the surgery was successful, Tommie's doctors prescribed two new drugs, as well as a round of stronger chemo, in an effort to ensure that if any cancer was left behind, it would be eradicated.

"I want an assurance that it's not going to happen again," Patti said. "And I know there's no way of doing that. As a mother, that's your biggest fear."

Aside from the hair loss that comes along with the taxing treatments, Tommie said he gets other side effects that last from two to three days each time. Nausea robs himof his appetite, and painful sores inside his mouth also prevent him from eating much, he said.

While it would be easy to slip into depression as a result of his illness, his family and friends provide a support system to prevent that. The Herbsts' children - Meghan, 19, Laken, 22, Cori, 23, and Rob, 25 - hang out with Tommie every day, even taking turns spending nights with himin the hospital when he has been there.

"It's a very big part of keeping my spirits up," Tommie said. "They just push me a lot, all my friends do, to get up ... and not mope around."

They push him in more ways than one. After one of the few winter snows, the Herbst clan took Tommie sledding at a nearby hill when he was feeling down, Robyn said.

Theresa Rossi is another close friend who has been by Tommie's side throughout the ordeal.

"She's like the big sister who keeps everyone together," Robyn said.

Theresa's mother, Camille Devarti, is also part of the strong support system, helping with fundraising efforts, according to Robyn.

Although Tommie's girlfriend Lindsay is away at college, he said she too has been a source of encouragement.

"Everybody treatsme like a normal kid, and like I don't have cancer, and I appreciate that," Tommie said. "It really keeps me going."

Along with Patti, Tommie's sister Tricia, 22, and grandmother, Helen, do everything they can to help him, he said. Though Tommie's appetite has suffered as a result of the chemo, he said cravings for food hit, sometimes at odd hours.

"Whether it's 3 o'clock in themorning or 1 o' clock in the afternoon, they'll always get up and get it for me," he said of his family.

Between the loss of his father and being diagnosed with cancer, Patti said, Tommie was forced to grow up fast.

"It's been, not a fair life for him," Patti said. "I'm doing OK. It's very difficult to do it as amother. Evenmore so, not havingmy husband around. We used to work off each other and pull support back and forth."

Considering all that Patti has been through, it is fortunate that she has friends to support her as well. Her own son's faith and perseverance are a beacon of light for her.

"He's determined to come through this," Patti said. "He has a very good outlook on the way it's going to be."

TheApril 27 event at the Stress Factory, 90 Church St., New Brunswick, will run from 5-7 p.m., and will include a comedy show and buffet, along with gift basket raffles and a 50/50. Tickets are $30.

In order to book the event, Robyn said they had to guarantee 150 ticket sales, so she is hoping the community will come out to support the efforts and enjoy an evening of food and entertainment at the same time.

Another opportunity to help Tommie will come April 29, when the Milltown Applebee's restaurant, 324 Ryders Lane, will host a "Dining to Donate" event. Patrons who present a flier for the event between 4 p.m. and closing time will have 10 percent of their check, minus liquor and tax, donated toward the Tommie Lukowski Special Fund.

Aspaghetti dinner at St. Bartholomew's Church, 460 Ryders'Lane, East Brunswick, is set forMay 30. That event will be held in the parish hall from 4:30-9 p.m.

For tickets, fliers for the Applebee's event or any other information, call the Herbsts at (732) 328-9252. For those who wish to make a donation, checks can be made out to Tommie Lukowski Special Fund in care of Bob Herbst and sent to 25 Channing Road, East Brunswick, NJ 08816.