Chad Carr Pediatric Brain Tumor Center will be 'place of hope' for families

(WJBK) - Chad Carr was a little angel who inspired us all to live life to the fullest, despite our obstacles. 

Chad died in 2015 after fighting an aggressive brain tumor. Chad, who is the grandson of former U-M football Coach Lloyd Carr, gained support from around the world with the hashtag campaign #ChadTough.

Now, his name will live on at a place designed to save children battling the same cancer that eventually took his life. 

The Chad Carr Pediatric Brain Tumor Center is being created at University of Michigan to research and treat brain cancer. Chad died 14 months after being diagnosed with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma, among the most lethal types of brain tumors.

"It is an amazing legacy for a little boy," says his mother, Tammi Carr. "To know that lives are going to be saved there, that gives real meaning to his 5-year-old little life."

About $30 million was raised to establish the research center.

"It's not about building a new building; it's about creating the research and getting the resources in there," she adds. They hope to eventually up that total raised to $50 million to put towards the center. 

"We are focusing every day on doing things to make the future different for kids as they come down the road," she says. 
 
A release says university researchers' discoveries include a study using tissue from Chad's tumor. It uncovered the role of a genetic mutation in the cancer's fatal course.

She says their family's organization, ChadTough Foundation, is focusing on research for DIPG, the tumor Chad was diagnosed with. Tammi says the survival rate for that diagnosis is zero percent. 

"We focus on this brain tumor, believing that if you focus on the hardest brain tumor the flood gates will open for all the rest," she says. "The Chad Carr Pediatric Brain Tumor Center at Michigan focuses on all pediatric brain tumors."

She says the goal of this center is to be the place where families can come and have hope when their child is diagnosed with a pediatric brain tumor. 

Tammi joined us in studio to tell us more about the center. You can hear from her in the video player above. 

If you'd like more information on volunteering or donating, visit www.ChadTough.org.