After Battling Cancer, Woburn First Grader to be Drafted by Tufts Men's Lacrosse Team

A 7-year-old about to be drafted by a college lacrosse team, Jacob Beranger isn't a phenom. But he is a fighter.

Beranger, a Woburn resident in remission from cancer, will be drafted by the Tufts University men's lacrosse team on Friday through the efforts of Team IMPACT, a group that seeks to give back to the community up and down the east coast.

On Friday, the Jumbos will pick Beranger up from school and bring him to the Tisch Center on campus for 3 p.m. According to a press release from the school, he will be greeted upon his entrance and a press conference will be held announcing his signing with Tufts.

Following the press conference, players will escort Beranger to the locker room, presented with a team jersey and will get to view a locker with his name plate on it.

Beranger was diagnosed with high risk neuroblastoma at the age of three, a type of cancer that develops in nerve tissue. Soon after, doctors discovered two large tumors and began aggressive treatment and eventually a bone marrow transplant.

Though the first grader had additional symptoms in the months following his treatment and was at one point put into a coma for two months while his body healed, he is now in remission.

Because of Beranger's treatment, he no longer has an immune system and receives a transfusion every six weeks. This is the first year he has been able to attend school, according to the Tufts press release.

"This is one tough kid," Tufts head coach Mike Daly said. "We are so happy, humbled, and grateful to be a part of Jacob's life through Team IMPACT."