Andre Hal gave thanks to God recently for healing him of his disease. Hal had previously been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, but the cancer has since gone into remission.

“First of all, I want to thank God,” said Hal. “Without God, I wouldn’t be here today. I had my faith in God, but I had confidence in myself. I did everything I could to beat this.”

Hal was diagnosed with the disease in May 2018, but decided not to undergo chemotherapy in hopes of being able to return to playing football during the 2018 season.

“I didn’t want to do chemo because I didn’t want to miss this year,” Hal said. “I don’t think people really thought I was going to come back and play, but I knew in my heart that I wanted to come back and play. I tried to do a ‘less harsh’ drug. So, I did Rituxan. I did that once a week for a month and the cancer went away.”

In addition to using Rituxan, Hal used a combination of traditional and nontraditional treatments. His other methods included acupuncture and a vitamin regime. Before undergoing his treatment, however, Hal stated that he would be leaning heavily on his faith during his fight with cancer.

“My faith in God and the support from my family, friends, teammates and coaches will see me through this difficult time. I will not let this diagnosis stop me from fulfilling my dreams, and I do not want anyone to feel sorry for me,” Hal said. “I know how to beat this and I will beat this.”

Hal’s success has since inspired teammates who are facing the same battle, including Texans defensive end J.J. Watt and Texans cornerback Johnathan Joseph. They might get to see Hal return to the field this season as well as beat cancer. Hal is still on the reserve/non-football illness list, but he is working with team trainers and his doctors to determine if he will be fit to play this season as he had wished. One can only hope that he manages a victorious return to the game as well as an incredible triumph over the emperor of all maladies.