‘Best dad’ says hearing son’s tumor is inoperable is like being ‘punched in the gut’

Josh Marshall was named “best dad” for getting a tattoo on his head to help his son, who has a brain tumor. He got that tattoo to match a scar Gabriel has after having surgery, which the boy said made him feel like a “monster.”

But this week, the family got news there will be no more surgeries for Gabriel. Doctors told them the brain tumor was inoperable.

Marshall, who lives in Hutchinson, Kansas, posted a video update on Gabriel’s condition on Monday.

“The tumor is in the center of the brain, around the thalamus, and it has some arteries that are going to it,” Marshall said in a soft voice, his expression defeated. “Surgery would be extremely dangerous and life-threatening.”

“I don’t even know what to think.”

It’s a very different picture from six months ago, when Josh Marshall won the St. Baldrick’s Foundation’s #BestBaldDad competition, which celebrates fathers who have shaved their heads for their children with cancer. Marshall stood out from an already great group of people because he had a tattoo on his head that matched the scar of his son, Gabriel. Marshall said he decided to get it after Gabriel told him the scar made him feel like a monster.

“This broke my heart,” Marshall told BuzzFeed. “I told him if people wanted to stare, they could stare at both of us.”

Gabriel had been diagnosed with anaplastic astrocytoma, a rare malignant brain tumor, when he was 6 years old in March 2015. But though part of the tumor was still on his brain, scans in June 2016 showed he was stable, and he had been off treatment for nine months.

Now, Josh Marshall said the family is just trying to stay strong, but hearing the tumor was inoperable was, “like getting punched in the gut all over again.”

“It’s a really hard update,” Marshall said. “Right now we’re just trying to remain as strong as we possibly can, and trying to enjoy the holidays the best that we possibly can.”

Marshall said Gabriel doesn’t seem to totally understand what the meeting meant, and they told him they’ll answer any questions he has. They’re still figuring out what the chemotherapy options are.

“We’re trying to keep our faith as strong as possible, and we’re hoping for the best possible outcome,” Marshall said, thanking the people who have supported their family.

You can donate to the family’s medical bills here.

This story was originally published December 2, 2016 at 6:37 PM with the headline "‘Best dad’ says hearing son’s tumor is inoperable is like being ‘punched in the gut’."