Joshua
Hometown: Pickerington, OH
Diagnosis: Clear Cell Sarcoma
Age on Race Day: 13
At 6 years old, Joshua and his parents went to Nationwide Children's Hospital Urgent Care in Canal Winchester when it appeared he had food poisoning. Imaging showed an enlarged spleen and Joshua and his parents were encouraged to follow up at Nationwide Children's Close To Home Center in Lewis Center for additional testing.
Once at Lewis Center, an ultrasound revealed that Joshua’s kidney was covered in tumors. Joshua was diagnosed with clear cell sarcoma of the kidney. Sent straight to Nationwide Children’s main campus, Joshua was immediately admitted, and a care team was assembled to walk him and his parents through his diagnosis and treatment options.
Over the next year, Joshua would go through radiation and chemotherapy treatments as well as surgery to remove his left kidney.
“The care team did a good job translating the data and lab results with us and guiding us how to balance his system to ensure that he stayed as healthy as he could throughout the process,” recalls Joshua’s mom, Colleen. “They did a good job with listening to our concerns about certain medications or processes and worked with us on alternatives.”
Today, Joshua is doing great. His care team continues to monitor his health, but he is considered to be in remission. He’s currently in 8th grade and when he’s not learning gaming code, he’s working on the sequel to his book “Dash” which was published in 2024 in partnership with Make a Wish.
