When Nicholas Parscale was diagnosed with pineoblastoma, a type of brain cancer, at age 10 in 2016, there was a lot he didn’t understand — like what pineoblastoma meant.
So five years and countless scans, doctor’s appointments and chemotherapy sessions later, he wrote a book to help kids like him understand the things he wished he would’ve known before he got cancer.
For example: “That’s why they call my particular cancer a pineoblastoma. At first they called it a glioblastoma. You’re going to hear a lot of big words you’ve never heard before, but don’t worry,” Nicholas writes. “There are people who talk like that at hospitals. Glioblastoma is the big category, like the NFL, and pineoblastoma is a specific team, like the Chiefs.”
The Lawrence boy will hold a book signing starting at 2 p.m. Friday at The Dusty Bookshelf, 708 Massachusetts St., to celebrate the publishing of “What I Wish I Knew Before Cancer: A Young Man’s Memoir.”
He will read from the book before signing copies for attendees, the bookstore said in a Facebook post.
In addition to writing a book, Nicholas also hosts a weekly podcast called “Nick the Brave: My story of chemo, kitties and canines” where he talks to folks around the country about how they maintain positivity in their lines of work — such as Top Chef’s Jennifer Carroll, professional athlete mindset coach Alan Stein, and others.
Oh, and here’s an episode he did with Kansas basketball coach Bill Self.
