By LuAnn Schindler
Publisher
Team Jack co-founder dies after battle with cancer
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March 4, 2021
Andy Hoffman, co-founder of Team Jack, died from cancer, Monday.
Andy Hoffman, of Atkinson, co-founder of the Team Jack Foundation for pediatric brain cancer research, lost his own battle with brain cancer Monday.
He was 42.
Team Jack Foundation released a statement about Hoffman's death via Twitter, Monday afternoon.
"We are deeply saddened to share that our co-founder,
@andrewjhoffman, passed away this morning from glioblastoma. Andy was our fearless leader who loved his family with all his heart. Andy, we love you & we promise to honor your legacy by fighting harder than ever for kids."
Hoffman learned he had glioblastoma, a malignant brain tumor, in July 2020. He started receiving chemotherapy and radiation treatments at the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minnesota.
Doctors reported two additional brain tumors in October. By January, imaging scans showed the tumors decreased in size. Hoffman continued chemotherapy. Radiation treatment was discontinued for a month, his wife, Brianna, wrote on a Facebook post last week.
In January, Hoffman developed a cough and took a COVID-19 test, which came back positive.
Hoffman received a monoclonal antibody infusion to combat the virus. On Feb. 8, he returned to the Mayo Clinic, due to worsening neurological symptoms. During that visit, the Hoffmans learned the cancer had progressed and new sites had developed.
Hoffman finished a round of radiation on Valentine's Day.
The Hoffman family - primarily their son, Jack - became the poster child for pediatric brain cancer research after the younger Hoffman was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2011. Following the formation of the Team Jack Foundation, Andy Hoffman led fundraising efforts that totaled more than $8 million for brain cancer research.
The tumor was inoperable and Jack began experiencing partial seizures.
After consulting with doctors at Children's Hospital in Boston, a second surgery was scheduled and a golf ball-sized tumor was removed.
Jack's relationship with Nebraska Cornhusker running back Rex Burkhead began prior to that surgery, when Jack was able to meet the Husker gridiron star in September 2011.
In 2013, seven-year-old Jack ran a touchdown play for 69 yards during the Huskers' annual spring scrimmage, which netted an ESPY award for best moment in sports.
Andy Hoffman penned a book - "Yards After Contact" - outlining Jack's journey in 2020.
Several weeks after submitting the manuscript, Andy Hoffman experienced a seizure while on a run. Soon after, he learned about his own brain tumor.
In addition to wife, Brianna, and son, Jack, Hoffman is survived by daughters, Ava and Reese.
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