'90 Day Fiance' couple Brandan and Mary Denuccio accused of scamming their fans with colon cancer 'lie'

A reality TV couple who asked for help to "remove colon cancer" from one of them have been accused of scamming their fans after they later revealed neither of them have been diagnosed with the disease.

Brandan and Mary Denuccio, who got married on TV series "90 Day Fiance: The Other Way" last year, who have more than 60,000 followes across their social media pages, told their followers that Mary had colon cancer over the weekend of February 17.

Brandan, who posts under the handle @brandan.denuccio18, wrote on his Instagram Stories: "I humble asking for your financial help for Mary's surgery to remove her colon cancer. We need help not judgments. Any amount will help Mary a lot and save her life." There was then a link to a GoGetFunding page where people could donate. Mary also posted about this on her Instagram page @mary90dayfiance.

Days later, however, the pair posted a now-deleted clarification on their Facebook page to say that they "don't know" if Mary has colon cancer. The post continued: "Yes, she posted on her IG that she have colon cancer because she watch TikTok videos of what is the symptoms of colon cancer and she have all of it. On February 16, [she had a check up and] the nurse said maybe she got UTI or apprendicitus and possible colon cancer and that's why Mary is very scared."

The fundraising page has since been taken down. According to TMZ, the campaign had apparently raised about $1,300 (around £1,030) or so before it was stopped. A representative for GoGetFunding (GGF) told TMZ that Brandan and Mary, who share a baby daughter called Mimi, are the ones who took it down. TMZ added, however, that the company was quickly flagged by users as suspicious and, after doing some investigating GoGetFunding felt there was enough evidence to remove the page.

GGF states that there's no way for them to refund anyone who donated to the page as donations were received via PayPal and and no funds actually passed through their site. GGF went on to say that they advised anyone who donated to dispute any charges or withdrawals from their bank accounts with their banks. They added that they suggest people report any suspicious activity to the police if they felt it rose to that level. It is not known if any reports have been made to police.

Earlier today (Wednesday February 21), Mary posted an apology on the couple's official Facebook page, @the.denuccio18, where she said she "made a mistake". She said: "I just want to say sorry for everyone. I posted saying I have colon cancer. I made a mistake and im just a human im very sorry everyone.

She went on to say that she had an "anxiety attack" when she heard she may have a problem with her colon and claims she misunderstood the meaning. "Because when the doctor told me I have colon issue I thought that means I have colon cancer. I got anxiety attack and I thought I have colon cancer and posted it without thinking."

She then revealed that she has received vile messages as a result of the original post. "It’s my fault and im very sorry about it. But please stop harassing me and wishing me to die. I’m just a human. I’m in pain right now and the pain won’t go away. I kept throwing up and I feel so weak. "

The mum added that she has been told by a doctor that her liver is inflamed and she also has a blood infection, UTI and hemorrhoids. She is still waiting for another laboratory test for my colon.

The couple have been met with many negative comments on their social media pages in the wake of their posts. One user referred to their posts as a "lie", while another added: "She doesn’t have cancer, it was a scam. I feel bad for anyone who donated."

Another person said: " Cancer is real and it’s a horrible thing to have. You should be ashamed of yourself!" One more branded them the "biggest clout chasers ever" and added: "Lying about cancer like it's a joke.Shame on you."

They have, however, received some support. One fan said: "Health anxiety is a common issue and with what you're experiencing I can see why you would have been anxious and posted. Sending you love and healing for everything that troubles you." Another added: "All that matters is that you’re okay feel better."