Yahoo Sports N.J. Teen Vowed to Continue to Play Basketball amid Cancer Diagnosis: It 'Took a Lot from Him, but It's Not Going to Take This'
Johnny Jackson continued to play basketball even after he was diagnosed with stage 4B Hodgkin's lymphoma in July 2024
NBC New York/Youtube
Johnny Jackson New Jersey TeenA New Jersey teen kept his head in the game, even amid his cancer diagnosis.
Johnny Jackson was in his junior year of high school when he randomly lost 18 pounds — causing concern for him and his family members. Despite this, the teen played at 50% the entire basketball season, averaging 22 points per game, according to NBC New York.
After searching for answers about his health, Jackson was diagnosed with stage 4B Hodgkin's lymphoma in July 2024, and a month later he started double-digit chemotherapy treatments.
However, the teen didn’t allow his life-changing diagnosis to take him out of the game. "The one thing that means the world to him, is playing basketball,” Jackson’s mother, Lynsey Jackson, told NBC New York. “Cancer took a lot from him, but it's not going to take this."
"I'm a competitor ... so I kind of just faced it like a game, and I was kind of up for the challenge from day one. I knew I was going to take it down," Jackson added to the outlet.
At his high school's season opener in December, the now-senior had already undergone 10 chemotherapy treatments, but he still opted to play in the game.
"I just went out there and did it," Jackson told NBC New York. "This chemotherapy, it's really vicious. I have nerve pain all over my body right now. It's just so brutal, it'll knock me out for a few days."
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Jackson's inner circle initially thought his cancer diagnosis would take him out of the game he loves so much, but they said he continued to defy all odds.
“For him to go to chemo on Monday and play in a game on Thursday and be the best player in the gym in that game, that’s an individual story that people wouldn't believe if it was in a movie,” Jackson’s coach Mike Troy told NBC New York.
His sister, meanwhile, told the outlet that her brother "truly has a different mindset compared to everyone else."
Jackson admitted to NBC New York that there’s "been a lot of health struggles, there's been a lot of ups and downs."
"But," he continued, "just making it this far to this point, it just feels great to be here right now."
Jackson recently marked his twelfth and final chemotherapy treatment on Jan. 13. In February, a PET scan will determine if he’s cancer-free.
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