Laney Buccaneer football player fighting new battle; will not have a senior year on the field
D.J. McLeod was diagnosed with a sarcoma Friday - a rare form of cancer
WILMINGTON, N.C. (WWAY) – It’s news no one wants to get – especially a 17-year-old rising senior in high school. But it’s now reality for DJ McLeod.
The Laney Buccaneer linebacker has been diagnosed with a sarcoma, which is a rare form of cancer, in his stomach. He has a tumor that has embedded itself in his abdomen. It is pressing on his bladder, his small intestine and large intestine.
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What started as a stomach ache for DJ has become a nightmare for his mother, Ashanti.
“We thought it was the normal constipation, stomach bug,” said Ashanti Craine. “Then it was when he had blood in his stool that something else must be going on. So we went to the E.R. and they did a CT scan and found a mass.”
“Nobody thought it was going to be what it was.”
Immediately they were transferred to the UNC health system.
“Cancer. Tumor. None of that had come up yet. It was after the PET scan that I first heard the words “tumor” and “active”,” said Craine. “The following day they did a biopsy and then that’s when they came back and said we don’t know what type it is – but we know it’s cancer.”
As of Tuesday, the doctors have still not determined what kind of sarcoma it is. They were supposed to start chemotherapy on Friday, but the tumor caused a full bowel obstruction. That lead to a major surgery on Monday to try and get it out, but were unsuccessful.
He currently has a colostomy bag and a pelvic catheter. Chemo and radiation will begin soon.
“Right now, we are just working toward as normal of a senior year that we can get.”
“UNC has been amazing. Their team ahs been amazing. They’ve made sure I understand every piece of this from the beginning to this point. That has really helped. The tiny bit of comfort I can have right now is I’m going to stay informed.”
Ashanti says has been struggling to show strength, but says DJ doesn’t give her an option.
“He’s one of the toughest kids I know. He has an amazing thought process about this. From the moment we found out, he has been like ‘Okay, let’s do what we have to do.’ His strength has helped me. I’m trying to keep it together and I look at him and I’m looking at him like ‘are you okay’ and he says ‘I’m going to be okay if you are okay.'”
“This is hard. This is hard because you have this picture in your head of what something is supposed to look like… and this was not what this was supposed to look like. This is not what his senior year was supposed to look like. And it sucks. It really sucks.”
The middle linebacker took over the starting roll about halfway through this past season during conference play. He accounted for 21 tackles. His head coach, Luke Little, says one of his best performances was his first start, against county rival and the conference-winners Hoggard Vikings.
“He worked his way in,” says Little. “He’s not really loud, he’s just always in a good mood. Fits in with all the kids, fit in as soon as he got here.”
DJ has not always been a Buc. He transferred in from Texas during the 2020 year, when students were at home during the quarantine school year.
“Coming in during the COVID times are tough on a kid.”
Coach says since it’s the dead period currently, he is not supposed to directly communicate with DJ. But he gets daily updates from Ashanti.
“Same old DJ, says Little. “Smiling and seemed like everything was good. Whether it is or not, he seems like it’s good.”
He’s had a strong effect on his teammates since joining the Bucs, says Little. That’s part of the reason the Buccaneer football family is trying to ease the burden of Ashanti and her family during this tough time. In just three days, parents have raised $1,600 dollars. Soon, they hope to have #DJStrong bracelets made to sell, among other ways to continue to raise funds.
“The community has come together great,” adds Little. “Whether they are staying in Chapel Hill or coming back and forth, it costs money. We want to help her out any way we can. Gas money, food money…We just try to help them out any way we can.”
“The love and support we’ve gotten from the Laney Buccaneer family has been nothing short of amazing,” says Craine. “I’ve gotten calls from football players, parents, people from other schools, they all want to help. Prayers are going up all over North Carolina and I couldn’t ask for better support.”
DJ is not an only child. He has three other siblings that are still in Wilmington. Craine leaves the hospital on Wednesday’s during the week to tend to her three other children. Her father stays with DJ for 2 days, then she takes the 2-plus hour drive back to UNC Health.
Here is her message to Laney parents that have chipped in:
Prayers for DJ. @FootballLaney #DJStrong https://t.co/DGdJaVwtDJ
— CoachCasperPowe (@PoweCoach) June 15, 2022
For those interested in easing the burden, there’s a GoFundMe for DJ and Ashanti. To donate or leave a message, click here
