Carter White was on track to become a Texas State Trooper when he received his diagnosis.
DALLAS — Carter White’s days begin with the end in mind.
“There’s something inside me that I just want to give back,” White said.
His mother, Beverly White, has seen his need too.
“It’s nothing that Carter can’t overcome. Nothing that he can’t power through,” Beverly White said.
These days, the Navy veteran uses that power in a way he’d never imagined.
“Jan. 3, 2024, is when my life turned upside down,” White said.
It changed his life because White was on track to become a Texas State Trooper. He’d been receiving support from the Texas Department of Safety’s Sgt. Germain Gaspard.
“He’s a true friend,” White said. “He has provided me so many outlets and giving me that courage and strength to keep on going forward.”
However, a few months before leaving for Austin, White had a seizure.
“They did a CT scan on Carter. That’s when they saw the mass on Carter’s brain,” his mother said.
Doctors diagnosed him with stage 4 melanoma, a type of skin cancer. It spread to his thyroid and lungs.
“We have no idea where the stage 4 melanoma started…We were told that it’s not normal in the brain. It doesn’t normally start in the brain, but Carter has been checked everywhere and it’s just not showing up anywhere else besides his brain,” said Beverly.
“I think for the longest time, I was convincing myself there was no way I had cancer,” White said.
He immediately began treatment. His first surgery resulted in an infection where a piece of his skull had to be removed. The family travels two hours from their home outside Gainesville for his appointments at UT Southwestern Medical Center.
“It’s more than a mother and child should bear,” Beverly White said.
That’s why they’re hoping to move closer.
They’ve been in contact with the Mark Cuban Heroes Center, which has a program that helps individuals facing challenges transition back to normal lives.
“We all go through various things. We all experience different things in life and the best way is to contribute however you can because you never know what position you might be in where you may have to receive that help,” Byron Busby, a Mark Cuban Heroes Center volunteer, said.
With support behind him, White is looking towards that finish line where he knows he’ll be back serving others again.
“I know one day though, I know one day, it’s going to be good,” said White.
A GoFundMe was created to help with White’s medical expenses and to move closer to treatment. To donate, click here.
