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Boy With Cancer Has Wrestlers' Support

Family photo

Devin Deschaine, 2, of Hudson has a rare, aggressive form of cancer called neuroblastoma. Pro wrestling fundraisers are being held for him this weekend in Port Richey and Brooksville.

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By GEOFF FOX

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 25, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY - Devin Deschaine is a fighter.

He doesn't have a choice.

The Hudson boy, whose brown hair used to hang down to his dark eyebrows, turned 2 on March 3. A few days later, his mother, Melissa Deschaine, 20, of Hudson, noticed him limping.

Her pediatrician referred the family to All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg.

The diagnosis was bad.

"We found out he had Stage 4 neuroblastoma," Deschaine said. "It's a rapidly spreading cancer. They think he had it about a month before they found it."

She spoke by phone from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, where Devin, now bald, had surgery to remove a tumor on his adrenal gland last week.

The disease most commonly affects children 5 and younger.

Every year there are about 650 new cases of neuroblastoma in the United States, according to Sloan-Kettering's Web site. Devin's cancer has spread to his skull, bone marrow, thighs, sternum and hip bones, his mother said.

For children with high-risk neuroblastoma, long-term survival ranges from 10 percent to 40 percent, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Children with aggressively treated, high-risk neuroblastoma may develop late recurrences, some more than five years after therapy is completed, according to the institute.

Deschaine said Devin is nearing the end of his treatment protocol and that more trips to Sloan-Kettering are probable.

She is a single mother and insurance doesn't cover all of the family's medical bills.

This weekend, local pro wrestlers will stage two events to raise money for Devin's family.

The first event, featuring 10 matches, will be at 8 p.m. Friday at the Regency Park Civic Center on Civic Drive in Port Richey. Doors open at 7 p.m.

The second event starts at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Brooksville National Guard Armory on Spring Hill Drive in Brooksville. Doors open at 7. Ticket prices vary for both events.

The wrestling events are part of the annual Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup. Peterson was a star on the independent wrestling circuit who died of cancer in November 2002.

The two-night, tournament-style event is coordinated by the Tammie Hamaoui Foundation, www.floridawrestlingfans.com, Pro Wrestling Riot and World Wrestling Network.

Devin probably would enjoy pro wrestling, his mother said.

"Anything destructive, Devin likes," she said. "If people are getting flung around, he loves it."

Despite the recent surgery, as well as radiation, chemotherapy and frequent trips to one hospital or another, Devin seems to be in good spirits.

"He was supposed to be on a breathing tube for 36 hours, but he was breathing on his own after an hour," Deschaine said.

"He only spent one night in ICU. His recovery after surgery has been awesome.

"To look at him, despite the bald head, you'd never know he was a kid with cancer. People look at him and say they can't believe he's sick."

WRESTLING FOR DEVIN

For event information, call (813) 960-8412. To buy tickets or make donations, visit www.jpc2008.com.

Information about Devin can be found at www.hope4devin.org.

Reporter Geoff Fox can be reached at (813) 779-4613 or gfox@tampatrib.com.

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