July 2021 was the worst month. Dashawn had a Bell’s Palsy face droop for months and his mom didn’t think nothing of it. As it kept getting worse, his mom scheduled him for a doctors appointment. The doctor mentioned a tick bite so they were going to do blood work to see if that’s what happened. They got the results back the next day and said it wasn’t. Then his doctor called his mom and said they need him to have an mri immediately and if they couldn’t get him in within a day or so they would need to take Dashawn to the ER. His mom was so scared and knew something was wrong. The mri was scheduled for two days later and before Dashawn was even dressed after his mri his doctor called to tell his mom that there was a mass on his brain.  His mom dropped to her knees and couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Originally he was diagnosed with Anaplastic Astrocytoma grade 3. They asked for a second opinion and was sent to CHOP where a biopsy was done on his tumor.  They were given the worst news ever - he has DMG and was given a minimum of 1-2 years to live.

After radiation, he started on ONC201 in December of 2021 and Dashawn has been doing great.  He had shrinkage or stable on every mri since 2021. He will be a miracle! The doctors are so thrilled with how well he is doing.

Dashawn has 2 sisters and is mommy's only boy. He is the sweetest young man there is and always puts everyone else’s feelings before his own.  Even through having brain cancer, he is still worried about everyone else. He loves to play hockey and loves the Pittsburgh Penguins and Steelers. His dream is to be a hockey player and he can’t wait to drive and be a daddy one day. 

Thank you for choosing to donate to The Cure Starts Now Foundation. 100% of this donation, after credit card processing fees, goes directly towards research to find the homerun cure for cancer starting with pediatric brain cancer research.

If you would like to make a donation by mail please send a check to:  The Cure Starts Now Foundation; 10280 Chester Road; Cincinnati, OH 45215 and put the child's name in the memo.

The family receives notification of all donations made to this tribute fund automatically.