About Tate
Tate entered this world full of laughter, compassion, spirit, and always smiling and that never changed, even when he was faced with fighting the monster that is DIPG. Growing up Tate was a very athletic kid who excelled in basketball, baseball, golf and football. He loved the Williamsburg Raiders and could not wait to be a part of the teams he grew up watching and idolizing. He was a huge Iowa Hawkeyes and Cubs fan. He could be found any game day in front of the TV or watching passionately in person with his competitive spirit. Sports meant so much to Tate beyond a win or a loss. It allowed him to find people he idolized and looked up too, create lifelong friendships, and provide him an outlet to truly be himself.
So when cancer decided to challenge him, Tate took that competitive fight and battled with everything he had…just like he did on the basketball court, baseball field, golf course and anywhere else he faced a challenge. He choose to compete in his battle against cancer just like he had competed in so many other ways. One of Tate’s favorite people in the world taught him a motto to live by "Win The Day". Each day your attitude and effort are really the only two things you can control in your life. Tate chose to live by this motto and it became a source of strength for him.
During Tate’s journey he decided that the name of his fight would be “TaterTough”. Tate never meant to be an inspiration to people and at times, it was a lot for him emotionally, but we reminded him that you don’t have to do huge, extraordinary things to inspire people. It can
Tate's Corner
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Celebration of Tate's Life:
One Quarter Left:
just be by living everyday doing the right things, being kind, and winning each day. By the way Tate chose to fight and live everyday, he became an inspiration for so many people.
Tate's Story
In December 2018, four months after his 11th birthday, Tate had an MRI done to address concerns that we were having with double vision, coordination, and other symptoms he was displaying. We had noticed these concerns at home, but it really became evident while practicing and playing basketball. We had Tate checked by our local optometrist who couldn’t find anything during the routine examination, but was still concerned and advised us to have an MRI done for deeper evaluation. On December 12, 2018 we were finally able to get insurance approval for an MRI to be done. That scan indicated a tumor in his brainstem and we were sent immediately to the ER at the University and later admitted to the 11th floor of the Children’s Hospital. It was there that we began our journey with UI Stead Family Children’s Hospital. The next day, December 13, 2018 we were told that Tate was being diagnosed with DIPG, a cancer that attacks the brain stem and has no cure. DIPG attacks mainly children under 11, but can be found in adolescents and even adults. It is considered to be terminal upon diagnosis and the average life expectancy/survival range after diagnosis is 8-11 months with only 10% of children surviving past 2 years and less than 2% surviving past 5 years.
Tate’s journey and fight with DIPG began that day at 11 years, 4 months and ended March 20th at the age of 13 ½. Tate beat the odds as found and lived each day to its fullest for 27 months! During that time he endured a total of 60 radiation treatments directly to his brain stem at the University of Iowa, 9 round trips to San Francisco where he participated in a CED (convection enhanced delivery) clinical trial, and other treatments and a trial drug administered at home and supervised by our oncologist at the University of Iowa for over a year.
His first 30 rounds of radiation took place at the University each week day. He had a mask made that would be placed completely over his face and head and then locked into place for the 15-20 minute radiation treatment. He was placed on steroids to help fight inflammation and other symptoms. During radiation Tate went to school nearly everyday, went on some short trips, and even played in basketball tournaments. Those treatments ended in February of 2019 and in May Tate began his participation in the CED trial at UCSF in San Francisco.
During the CED trial, a catheter was placed into his brain stem using MRI to attempt to deliver chemotherapy directly into the tumor. This was attempted because the pons is protected by the blood brain barrier and hinders delivery of many anticancer drugs. The procedure was done for about 10-12 hours on day 1 and then another 4-6 hours on day 2. Tate participated in 4 CED procedures with the 4th being cut short due to concerns with impact to his speech and motor functioning. During the trial, scans indicated that his tumor remained stable, but the decision
was made to end treatments to do side effects and damage being done. His last procedure took place in October of 2019 and by December of 2019, MRI scans indicated signs of progression and tumor growth.
In January of 2020, Tate was approved for compassionate care usage of a trial drug called ONC 201. He was able to take that at home and be monitored monthly at the University of Iowa. Tate continued on ONC 201 until January of 2021 when he was no longer able to swallow the oral medication and handle the nausea that he experienced. In addition to taking that medicine, Tate received a 2nd round of radiation in March and April of 2020 at the University. For much of 2020, the tumor remained stable, but radiation effect had an impact on Tate’s motor skills, impacting his ability to walk, use his right arm, and his speech.
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By December of 2020, the tumor began growing and we had to make the very difficult decision that there were no longer any treatment options available. At the beginning of March of 2021, Tate had an NG tube placed to provide nutrition and medications as he was no longer able to swallow liquids or solids. On Friday March 26th Tate aspirated while trying to swallow and on Monday March 29th Tate passed away at home in his bed surround by his Dad (Brad), Mom (Darcy) and Sister (Teagan).
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Through all of his battle, Tate never stopped smiling. He never stopped finding joy and a way
to do the things he loved…even when his body started shutting down, he found a way. It was
in those times that we found so much love and support from so many around us and that
love brought Tate so much strength.
We miss Tate with every ounce of our being and our hearts shattered when we had to say our final goodbyes to him, but we promised him that we would do everything we could to share his story of courage, strength, resilience, and faith with everyone we could. A message to live life to
its absolute fullest and love those around you with everything you
have. Smile and be kind to a stranger….Live TaterTough.
