James Conner Announces He Is in Remission from Hodgkin Lymphoma
"God is AMAZING. Just got the call that my body is clean of cancer!!! Been a long road but God had my back. Thanks everyone who said prayers!
โ James Conner ๏ธ (@JamesConner_) May 23, 2016"
Doctors diagnosed Conner with Hodgkin lymphoma in December. On May 9, he tweeted he had finished his chemotherapy treatments:
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"Glory to God allowing me to get through these 12 schedule chemo treatments.. Been a long road, Results coming soon!
โ James Conner ๏ธ (@JamesConner_) May 10, 2016"
"(He) fought cancer the same way he plays football: relentlessly and without surrender," Pittsburgh head coach Pat Narduzzi told Pete Thamel of Sports Illustrated.
The redshirt junior suffered a season-ending knee injury in Pitt's first game of the 2015 season. He was coming off a monster 2014 campaign in which he rushed for 1,765 yards and 26 touchdowns. Ellen DeGeneres shared Conner's story on the April 21 episode of her daily talk show:
In a press release announcing his diagnosis in December, Conner indicated he intended to suit up for the Panthers again: "I will play football again. I will be at Heinz Field again. I have the best coaches and teammates in the country. I thank God I chose Pitt because now I also have the best doctors in the country, and together we will win. I know this city has my back."
On Feb. 26, Narduzzi told Jerry DiPaola of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "I believe he will [play]. I'm pretty confident that he will beat it."
Conner has a little over three months to get ready for the Panthers' first game of the year, a Sept. 3 tilt against the Villanova Wildcats. He will likely have to compete for the starting job, as Qadree Ollison ran for 1,121 yards and 11 touchdowns as a freshman last season.
Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry, who was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma in late 2014, announced in July his cancer was in remission, and he played in the Chiefs' first preseason game of the 2015 season on Aug. 15.
