On Friday December 17, 2021, Shane was in gymnastics class tumbling and doing bar work. His left hand was fisting, and he seemed unable to control it during the class. His pediatrician had him come in on Saturday morning and immediately sent us to the Duke ED. Shane was diagnosed in the Duke ED late that night with a brain tumor in his Thalamus/Brain Stem at 6 years old. He was admitted for steroid therapy and underwent brain surgery on December 22, spending Christmas in the ICU under Covid Protocols. The hope was for complete removal of the tumor, however they were able to remove only 60% before his left side stopped moving when they tested it. The surgery left him with severely diminished mobility on his left side. This landed him in inpatient rehab for New Year's Eve at Levine Children's Hospital in Charlotte, NC for the next 4 weeks. There, he began the long fight for control over his left hand and learned to walk again, getting out of his wheelchair with more confidence 2 days before being discharged. We would find out later that Shane had also lost half of his vision to the tumor. On return to Duke, a follow up MRI showed that the "slow growing tumor" had grown back to near original size during his rehab stay. In short, the journey to follow would be 3 years of 3 different treatments. For the first 2, we were attempting oral chemo based on the genetic makeup of the tumor in an effort to avoid IV chemo. Both treatments were not an effective option, and so he inevitably had a port surgically implanted and began IV chemo on the same day. He underwent this treatment at first weekly and then transitioning to monthly. He was also on a host of medications to manage the side effects each time he went in for an infusion, eventually becoming allergic to the chemo he was on. Time and again, Shane bravely walked into that hospital for a treatment that he knew would cause him pain, but also knowing that the alternative was worse. He did that for 17 months. Over the course of treatment, imaging showed that the tumor had shrinkage and then stayed stable. On January 31, 2025, he was granted a pause in treatment to see how his tumor reacts. He is ELATED to get a break. We are now waiting 3 months for a follow up MRI to see if the tumor continues to remain stable. We are cautiously hopeful for him, wanting nothing more than for that thing to stop growing and re-growing. That brings us to today. Today, we are smiling a little more, not counting down the days until the next treatment and not making plans on how to get him through it. Now we are counting down days to the next MRI. Thank you for supporting Shane and the more than 300,000 kids worldwide who will be diagnosed with cancer this year. By sharing the gifts of your time, talent and money with the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, you're supporting research to give all kids with cancer a better chance for a cure.