Ex-NY Rep. Joe Crowley's 25yo standout son dies from rare cancer: ‘Genuine love of life'
Ex-New York Rep. Joe Crowley's 25-year-old son — a Marine and Naval Academy grad — has died from a rare cancer, his grieving dad revealed over the Memorial Day weekend.
The Democratic former Big Apple congressman disclosed in 2023 that his oldest son, Cullen, had been diagnosed with desmoplastic small round cell tumors just seven months after he graduated from the prestigious military academy as a second lieutenant.
'With heavy hearts, Kasey, Kenzie, Liam, and I share the passing of our beloved son and brother, Cullen Crowley,' Joe Crowley posted to X on Sunday, referring to his wife and two other kids.
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'When we think of Cullen, we can't help but smile. He radiated an infectious and genuine love of life — one that lifted the spirits of everyone around him,' Crowley wrote.
Former New York City Rep. Joe Crowley's 25-year-old son, Naval Academy grad Cullen, passed away Sunday after a battle with cancer.
x.com/JoeCrowleyNY
'[Cullen] became a Midshipman in 2018, a Marine in 2022, and continued his service at Quantico until retiring in 2024 following his diagnosis,' Crowley wrote.
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Cullen retired from the Marine Corps last year as a first lieutenant.
Crowley repped the Bronx and Queens before being shockingly trounced by then-political newcomer Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in 2018.
Cullen Crowley retired from the Marines last year as a first lieutenant.
x.com/JoeCrowleyNY
Crowley lost the primary to AOC the same night he first dropped Cullen off at the Naval Academy, the ex-rep told The Hill in 2022.
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In 2023, Cullen underwent '15 hours of surgery' to remove tumors in his abdomen and kidney. The cancer had already spread to the young man's bones, but his dad said they believed he still had a fighting chance.
'He stayed strong throughout — just as he has since his diagnosis,' Crowley wrote at the time of his son after surgery.
'He's a Marine after all.'
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On Sunday, the father said of Cullen, 'He never let the odds define him.
'Instead, he met each day with the same joy and gratitude for life.'
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'Therefore, we believe that the most important mechanism for achieving sustained CDAI remission at weeks 12, 24, and 52 is that chronotherapy maximized the effect of baricitinib by week 12 after initiation, when all components of CDAI have responded well,' he said. 'The results demonstrate the crucial importance of the treat-to-target strategy.' Earlier studies demonstrated the potential of chronotherapy. Researchers in Berlin, led by Frank Buttgereit, MD, at Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany, reported in 2008 that modified-release prednisone reduced the duration of morning stiffness in RA. In 2013, Buttgereit's group reported that low-dose prednisone chronotherapy when added to existing disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs produced significantly higher response rates than placebo for ACR20 — 48% vs 29% ( P < .001), and more than double the rate for a 50% improvement (22% vs 10%, P < .006). 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