Ava Jones, former Hawkeye basketball player, announces cancer diagnosis

Ava Jones, the former Iowa basketball player who was injured in a DUI incident in Louisville in 2022, stated on Instagram that she has been diagnosed with Hodgkin's cancer.

Jones had committed to play basketball for the Iowa Hawkeyes before sustaining a brain damage after she and her family were hit by a drunk motorist on July 5, 2022. Her father, Trey Jones, died, and she had a brain damage. Her mother was also harmed.

"I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma after the results from the biopsy came back," she said. "This is the news no one ever wants to get, but especially after spending the last 2 and a half years working my butt off and recovering from getting hit by a car. My body is very strong and I am confident in the doctors here at Iowa."

Iowa honored Jones' scholarship, and she played basketball as a freshman before medically retiring eight months ago. She underwent many procedures to treat both the brain injuries and the several torn ligaments in her knees.

Jones redshirted with the Hawkeyes her rookie year, wanting to play later, but declared her retirement from the sport on June 7, 2024.

"It is with great sadness to announce that I am medically retiring from college basketball. My coaches, doctors, teammates and trainers have been amazing since the accident," Jones said when she retired. "While I will no longer be a member of the women's basketball program, I will still be on scholarship, receive a world-class education and forever be a Hawkeye. I'd like to thank my family for the never-ending support and I am excited for the next chapter of my life."