Northeastern men’s hockey alum Wade MacLeod is currently battling brain cancer, a Grade 3 glioblastoma tumor, and is now preparing for his fourth brain surgery in the last five years.
A GoFundMe has been set up to assist his family in the medical costs, and donations can be made by visiting GoNU.com/Wade.
MacLeod, now 31, suffered a grand mal seizure on the ice five years ago while playing for the AHL’s Springfield Falcons. That led to the discovery of the first tumor. MacLeod returned to the game a year later, after undergoing brain surgery to remove the tumor.
Following surgery, MacLeod lost the ability of speech and spent three months undergoing speech therapy. His dream of being a husband and father has come true with a beautiful wife, Karly, and 11-month old baby girl, Ava James.
Since then, the tumor has relentlessly grown back three times. Each time, MacLeod returned to the game, but his dream of playing in the NHL was over.
What this means for MacLeod and his family is that they have to incur all prescription costs that he will have to take over his entire lifetime, as well as any treatments outside of his basic medical services plan, which is weighing heavily on their finances and they will not be able to sustain the strain with no income.
MacLeod was a four-year letter-winner at Northeastern from 2007 to 2011, finishing his career with the school record for most games played (149), a record that still stands today. He had 137 points, good for a tie for 24th all-time at Northeastern, on 61 goals (tied for 24th all-time in school history) and 76 assists (tied for 25th all-time at NU).
He led the Huskies in scoring as a sophomore (35 points), junior (30 points) and senior (45 points), as well as a team-high in goals as a senior and team-high in assists during the 2008-09 and 2010-11 seasons. He was also a two-time All-Hockey East honoree, earning honorable mention accolades in 2009 and second team status in 2011.
