ChadTough Defeat DIPG Foundation is excited to announce the kickoff of the 8th annual RunTough 5K and 1M Fun Run, which will be held both virtually anywhere, anytime and in person at Saline Hornet Stadium on September 25th. This family-friendly 5K and 1 Mile Fun Run with a FREE Family Fun Zone is the foundation’s longest-running event.

“RunTough for ChadTough” originated in 2014 when a group of neighbors in the Saline area came together in support of Chad Carr, a 3-year-old boy who had been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer called DIPG. Since then, RunTough alone has raised over $1.5 million for pediatric brain cancer research and inspired more than 13,000 registrants.

“RunTough will always hold a special place in our heart,” said co-founder Tammi Carr. “Our community surprised us within weeks of Chad’s diagnosis. The outpouring of support meant everything. We now hold the event around his birthday every year as a celebration of his life. And it has become the primary way we endure marking another year without him.”

Brain cancer kills more kids than any other type, and DIPG is responsible for almost half of all pediatric brain cancer deaths. With a nearly 0% survival rate and less than 1% of federal cancer research funding earmarked for ALL types of pediatric brain cancer, it’s no surprise that the standard of care has not changed in the six decades since Neil Armstrong’s daughter died of DIPG. But thanks primarily to families like the Carrs, who have channeled their grief into an effort to fund game-changing research on DIPG, doctors have begun to discover breakthrough treatments that are showing great promise, so much so that they now believe a cure will be found in our lifetime.