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On January 5th, 1985, Michael James Cuccione was born to parents Domenic and Gloria Cuccione in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. He had a sister who was older than him by three years, Sophia, and when Michael was three his younger brother, Steven Cuccione, was born. Michael was an outgoing, bright, friendly and talented child with a knack for singing, dancing and performing. But when Michael was nine years-old, two lumps were found near his collar bone. On July 25th, 1994, Michael was diagnosed with a specific type of cancer: Hodgkin's Disease.
For the next six months Michael went through chemotherapy, and after that there was hope that the cancer was gone. But six months later the cancer returned and was even worse than the first time: it had spread to his lungs. He had to go through a bone marrow transplant, more intense chemotherapy, and twelve radiation treatments to his lungs and heart. Miraculously he beat the cancer once again and on August 1st, 1996, Michael celebrated being cancer-free one whole year.
During his bout with Hodgkin's Disease and onward through the rest of his life Michael dedicated himself to raising money to find a cure for cancer. He spent lots of time doing public speaking about cancer and even started his own foundation: The Michael Cuccione Foundation. He spoke in hospitals and charity events, and spent time with kids suffering with cancer. He came out with his own CD called "Make A Difference", and also wrote a book with his grandmother called "There Are Survivors: The Michael Cuccione Story". Both the CD and book were inspirational tales of how he overcame cancer. The profits made from his CD and book were donated to charity. He traveled many places during this time, spending hours upon hours promoting and raising money, and increasing awareness about his disease.
In October of 1996, the Make A Wish Foundation granted Michael his wish. Michael got to go on the set "Baywatch." His CD and story caught the interest of actor David Hasselhoff. Michael was asked to played a child, named Charlie, who was battling cancer. He got to act out the role of Charlie in August of 1997. It was a dream of Michael to be on TV.
A few years later Michael auditioned for a TV-movie MTV was making. The part called for acting and singing, so he performed one of his own songs, "Visualize", and got the part. He was now in a made-for-TV movie called "2gether", which is a story about a boy-band formed together by a manager. Michael played Jason "QT" McKnight, the youngest of the band members. The movie was a big hit, and the actors in 2gether released a soundtrack for the movie. "Visualize" was included on the CD.
MTV then made a TV show called "2gether" where Michael still played "QT". The first season was a huge success. The actors were now also a real band; they were played on the radio and made music videos. Another CD was released, it was called "2gether: Again". Things were going great for Michael; he had an army of fans, but not many of them knew of his past. Towards the very end of the first season, fans started to notice that Michael wasn't starring in many of the episodes.
"2gether" was picked up for a second season, but during this time Michael's health was failing. Stories were getting to the press of Michael's health. On the set he had to have an oxygen machine with him, and he had to be closely watched. Late in the year of 2000 he was involved in a minor car accident and caught pneumonia. While in the hospital, the upbeat Michael kept a smile on his face. But sadly on January 13th, 2001 (a few days after his 16th birthday), Michael's lungs collapsed and he passed away.
Even at the young age of 16, Michael Cuccione accomplished and achieved much more than some people will in their whole life. He got to travel, meet tons of people, be recognized as a celebrity, and be remembered as a great person who dedicated his life to find a cure for cancer. Even though he is gone his memory and foundation will live on. His fans will miss him, but will always remember him and his motto: "2gether, We Can Make A Difference".
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