September 15, 2026 | By Atrium Health Foundation | In Events
In February 2026, Tara Caveny first noticed something different about her son. True, then 4, appeared thinner as his appetite decreased; he seemed sensitive on the left side of his mouth, and soon, he was sleeping more than usual.
They sought medical care, visiting doctors and emergency departments to understand what was happening. Eventually, True could no longer make it through a school day without wanting to sleep. Then Tara noticed his left eye didn’t look aligned with his right.
The next day, she took True to Atrium Health Levine Children’s Hospital where the care team listened to her concerns and advocated for True to receive an MRI that same day. The scan revealed a tumor near his cranial nerves.
True spent the next 22 days in the hospital, most of them in the pediatric intensive care unit. After CT imaging and a carefully performed biopsy, his family learned he had embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare soft-tissue cancer. It was a devastating diagnosis for a young child who already faced epilepsy and had experienced seizures since he was 10 months old.
“I remember thinking, ‘Why him?’” Tara recalled. “True had already been through so much. Those first days and weeks were honestly a blur. I think I was mostly in shock.”
Because the tumor was intertwined with important nerves, True’s care team determined that chemotherapy and radiation, rather than surgery, would be used for treatment.
Even amid the uncertainty, Tara found reassurance in the people caring for her son. “From the very beginning, the team at Levine Children’s made an unimaginable situation feel as manageable as it possibly could,” she said.
During True’s stay, his care team saw more than his diagnosis. His occupational therapist helped him stand and walk for the first time after he was extubated following his biopsy. Child life specialists brought him toys and books, music therapists sang with him, and facility dogs visited his bedside to offer comfort and distraction. Together, they found ways to help True feel like a kid during a frightening time.
Since then, True has undergone chemotherapy and completed 28 proton beam treatments at Atrium Health Levine Cancer Proton & Advanced Radiation Center, the only proton therapy center in the Carolinas. He has a port and a G-tube and will continue chemotherapy through December before transitioning to maintenance treatment.
Through everything he’s endured, True remains unmistakably himself. “He is still the happiest, sweetest, most courageous little boy,” his mom said.
This fall, True started kindergarten at home. He loves superheroes, monster trucks, swimming in the ocean, riding his scooter, making up new songs, and making people laugh. “He really just loves life,” Tara said. “And I think life loves him right back.”
True’s strength has been matched by the care and love that surrounds him. His mom says her faith, family, friends, and coworkers have carried them through the hardest moments.
“To me, ‘Keep Pounding’ means that no matter what life throws at you, sometimes all you can do is keep going,” she said. “You take it one day at a time, one treatment at a time, one challenge at a time, and you just keep moving forward.”
On September 27, True and Tara will participate in the Keep Pounding 5K, presented by Rodgers Builders, Inc., helping raise funds for cancer programs at Atrium Health Levine Cancer and Atrium Health Levine Children’s in Charlotte, N.C. Joined by “True’s Crew,” they’ll take part as a way to give back to the people and services that have meant so much to their family.
And True is perhaps the best example of “Keep Pounding” they could have. “He gets up, keeps going, keeps playing, keeps smiling, and somehow continues to find joy through all of it,” Tara said. “Being strong doesn’t mean something isn’t hard. It just means you keep going even when it is.”
Today, True is surrounded by people who believe in him — his mom, family and friends, his dedicated care team, and a community who’ll be cheering him on at the Keep Pounding 5K.
“I hope when people hear his story, they don’t just see everything he’s had to overcome,” Tara shared. “I hope they see the little boy that I see: someone who is deeply loved, who loves life right back, and whose joy has never been defined by his circumstances.”