Columbus boy shares cancer journey during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

MIDLAND, Ga. (WTVM) - September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, bringing recognition to the fight children, teens and their families face while dealing with the illness.

In honor of the month, one Columbus family is sharing their story in hopes to inspire others.

Colton Hall is a vibrant young boy. He loves video games, hanging out with friends and being with his family.

He also loves the game of soccer.

“I want to eventually become a soccer player for Atlanta United,” said Colton.

But the 9 -year- old and Britt David Magnet Academy student has put the soccer ball down as he fights a major illness.

“I have leukemia which is cancer of the blood,” said Colton.

He was diagnosed with cancer this spring. Colton’s Doctor explained.

“Leukemia is actually a cancer of white blood cells, said Pediatric Oncologist at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Waitman Aumann. “Sometimes the infection fighting cells in our bodies, sometimes they go rogue and form a cancer.”

Colton’s family remains positive while he undergoes weekly chemotherapy treatments at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

They’re also documenting his journey on social media, all while gaining support from the community.

“We have a great support squad, that helps us, and our jobs have been wonderful at letting us put our family first, but you never want to see your child go through that,” said Colton’s mom Jennifer Hall.

“It hit us hard when Colton was diagnosed,” said Colton’s father Travis Hall.

Recognizing cancer in children is important because not a lot of money goes toward organizations and research for this age group.

“The National Institutes of Health (NIH) supports a lot of oncology research, but roughly about 4 percent of oncology research dollars go toward pediatric cancer which is not a lot,” said Dr. Aumann.

That’s why Colton has shared his story and designed greeting cards for the Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer Research.

“I want to raise a lot of money for childhood cancer awareness so they can find a cure that will instantly get rid of it for good,” said Colton.

Colton also had the time of his life, meeting Former NFL player Calvin “MegaTron” Johnson through children’s hospital programming.

“At first I didn’t know him until I called him (pointing at his dad). I’m more into soccer, but football is pretty much the only sport on tv in this house,” said Colton.

Colton told News Leader 9 he enjoyed his meeting with Jonson having small talk and bonding over videogames.

Young Colton sharing positive thoughts on his journey and a message to anyone going through something.

“There’s a lot of people that love you, and you should love yourself as well,” he said.

You can help fight childhood cancer by supporting organizations that put research dollars toward child cancer research.

You can also buy a set of greeting cards designed by Colton all proceeds will go to the Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer Research.

You can see Colton’s journey here.

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