Eleven-year-old Caleb Grimsley just started sixth grade, plays basketball, loves fishing and has taken up cooking. Eight years ago, doctors diagnosed him with atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor, an aggressive form of brain cancer, when he was just three years old. Now Caleb and his mother, Christina Grimsley, are sharing that journey as the St. Jude Walk and 5K Run returns to Tampa this weekend.
The event is set for Saturday at Benchmark Arena, 401 Channelside Drive, according to FOX 13 News, which reports the gates open at 6:45 a.m. The official event page from St. Jude lists the opening ceremony and Kids Dash at 7:30 a.m., followed by the 5K walk start at 8 a.m. The day includes an opening ceremony, a Kids Dash, the 5K walk/run and a celebration party afterward, and it is free to attend and participate.
A Diagnosis That Upended a Family
Caleb was three years old when he was diagnosed with ATRT, an aggressive malignant tumor that can occur in the brain or spinal cord. According to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, the condition is rare and most often seen in children age 3 or younger, with fewer than 100 new cases diagnosed nationwide each year. Treatment typically involves surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy, and St. Jude also offers clinical trials for children, teens and young adults with ATRT and other brain tumors.
For the Grimsley family, that meant an expert at St. Jude who treated ATRT and a clinical trial offered to Caleb, per the FOX 13 News report. St. Jude arranged the family's flights to and lodging in Memphis, and Caleb spent about a year at the hospital undergoing treatment that included surgeries, radiation and chemotherapy. He eventually returned home with no evidence of disease.
Life After Treatment
Today, Christina Grimsley says her son is active and brings joy to the family, according to the same FOX 13 News account. She said St. Jude gave her family hope during an overwhelming time. Caleb has since started sixth grade and spends his free time on basketball, fishing and cooking.
The hospital's mission extends beyond individual patients like Caleb. St. Jude provides care and living expenses for families during a child's treatment and uses art therapy, toy rooms, therapy dogs and music lessons to help preserve some sense of normalcy for young patients. The station's report notes that St. Jude shares its research with hospitals and medical communities around the world, including sharing the ATRT treatment protocol with hospitals in Orlando, which the report says allows some families to be treated closer to home.
How Tampa Bay Can Take Part
The Tampa event is part of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Participants can register individually, join or start a team, donate, or take part virtually rather than in person, and organizers encourage donations and fundraising to support St. Jude patients and research broadly. Registration is available through the St. Jude Walk Tampa website.
Similar St. Jude walk/run events elsewhere, including one in Springfield, Missouri, have paired a scenic 5K with family-friendly activities and live entertainment, per runsignup.com, giving a sense of the community atmosphere organizers aim to build in Tampa as well.
