Applications for grants to help cancer patients pay their bills have jumped 70% in the last month, according to the Joe Andruzzi Foundation, as families across New England describe everyday expenses piling up on top of a devastating diagnosis. Among them are Emma Morson, 26, who is battling a brain tumor, and her husband, Jahlani Morson, a U.S. Marine lance corporal, who received a foundation grant to help pay their bills.
The foundation was founded by Joe Andruzzi, a former Super Bowl-winning New England Patriots offensive lineman who survived cancer himself, according to the Lowell Sun. Andruzzi has said the need for assistance is present, and foundation chairman Joe Destefano attributed the sharp rise in grant requests to gas, phone, housing, food and other everyday bills piling up on families already overwhelmed by treatment. Destefano said these financial pressures contribute to roughly 50% of diagnosed people going bankrupt, in his telling, and said there is strength in numbers as the foundation leans on outside partners to stretch its reach.
Foundation grants, the Lowell Sun reports, can cover expenses as varied as a gas card or help with college loan payments. The Morsons received one of those grants as they navigate Emma's treatment. Emma Morson said her brother ran the Boston Marathon to raise money for the foundation, and the couple was honored by the foundation on November 10, which marked the 251st birthday of the U.S. Marine Corps, established in 1775, as noted by The Boston Herald.
A Marriage Tested, and a Promise Kept
Emma Morson has said faith has replaced hope as she and her husband search for daily joy amid treatment. Jahlani Morson described their situation as a different kind of war, one that required him to adapt lessons from his time in the Marines. Emma has said she had told Jahlani she would call off their marriage if a suspected tumor proved cancerous — a plan he did not follow through on.
Emma's mother, Rachel Goodwin, said the family is deeply grateful for the Andruzzi Foundation's support, and that the organization can briefly make patients happy by helping with groceries or transportation. According to the Lowell Sun, Emma's brain tumor places the family in the highest estimated range for first-year cancer costs, which the paper reports can run from $43,000 to $190,000 in the first year depending on the type of cancer.
Why Applications Are Climbing
Jen Andruzzi said the stark increase in applications for help stems from more cancer diagnoses overall, especially among younger people, per the same Lowell Sun report. She said younger patients tend to have less savings to fall back on, and that the foundation is seeing more applicants with breast or colon cancer. The paper defines early-onset cancer as cancer affecting people under 50 and says that category has surged.
Dr. Ann Partridge, vice chair of medical oncology at Dana-Farber, said cancer treatment, detection and cures have improved, but that cancer incidence in the United States continues to increase, adding to the need to support patients through treatment, the outlet reports. Destefano said rising living and health-insurance costs are daunting for people newly diagnosed with cancer, on top of their medical bills.
How the Foundation's Programs Work
The Joe Andruzzi Foundation has given out $14.5 million in grants to cancer patients overall, according to the Lowell Sun. Its Financial Assistance Program, in place since 2008, supports basic monthly household expenses such as rent or mortgage, car payments or insurance, and utilities, according to the Joe Andruzzi Foundation. The foundation says it provides grants of up to $800 to cancer patients in active treatment across New England, though the program does not cover credit-card bills or medical-related expenses. Staff typically review applications within three to five weeks, and approved checks are mailed directly to providers or vendors.
Beyond bill assistance, the foundation's Food Security Program, launched in 2021, provides grocery-store gift cards ranging from $150 for a single person to $300 for households of five or more. Its Treatment Transportation Program, which began offering free rides through Lyft and local cab companies as of January 2022, provided more than 4,000 free rides in its first year. A separate Extraordinary Needs Program offers one-time grants of up to $4,000 for project-based needs that present a barrier to treatment — a program that, per the foundation's January 2026 newsletter, provided more than $105,000 in grants to 50 patients across New England in 2025.
In the first half of 2026 alone, the foundation says it supported more than 1,930 patients and family members, awarding over $637,000 in assistance, per a report from Joe Andruzzi Foundation. The foundation has said it works through partnerships with more than 100 cancer hospitals and centers across the region. To help applicants locate additional support, the foundation added a Unicorn Resource Finder to its website, pointing to outside organizations including the Ellie Fund, Blood Cancer United, A Wish Come True, A Kid Again, Lasagna Love, The Love Bus, NeedyMeds, Sail Beyond Cancer USA, Cancer 1 Source, and Joe's House, which provides lodging for people traveling for treatment.
