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Last year, in March 2015, 8-year-old Gabriel Marshall was diagnosed with a type of brain cancer called anaplastic astrocytoma. This type of cancer is extremely rare and causes a large, malignant tumor to grow in a person’s brain. The most common form of treatment for this cancer is surgery.
Thankfully, Gabriel’s surgery was successful. A small portion of the tumor still remains in his brain, but the cancer and Gabriel’s condition are now stable. He has officially been off treatment for nine months.
Unfortunately, the small, remaining tumor isn’t the only lingering reminder of Gabriel’s illness.
The surgery left Gabriel with a large scar on the side of his head, and Gabriel told his dad that the scar made him feel like a “monster.”
Father Josh Marshall was heartbroken by this answer and resolved to find a better way to support his son.
His solution: get a tattoo that matched Gabriel’s scar.
Josh explained, “I told [Gabriel] if people wanted to stare, they could stare at both of us.”
During Father’s Day this year, Josh entered St. Baldrick’s Foundation’s #BestBaldDad competition, a submission-based contest honoring fathers, uncles, or grandfathers who have shaved their heads to honor a child who had or has cancer.
Josh’s entry won, and his and Gabriel’s story has since been shared widely across social media, gathering hundreds of thousands of voices in support of the father-son duo.
As for Gabriel, he loves his dad’s scar. It makes him feel like they’re “twins.”
