Buckeye grad heading to Francis Marion Shelby Jones overcomes illness


by Casey Pritchard assistant sports editor


Two years ago Shelby Jones’ volleyball career nearly took a permanent hiatus because of a freak illness. Instead, she battled through and is now getting a scholarship to Francis Marion University in Florence, S.C. A 2010 graduate of Buckeye Union High School, Jones had a health scare in the fall of the same year that nearly paralyzed half her body for life. “They told me I would never play volleyball again after that, and they didn’t think I would recover from paralysis,” Jones said. Jones had transverse myelitis, an auto immune disorder


that affects the spinal cord. “A spot developed on my spinal cord and my body was attacking it so I became paralyzed from my belly button up within 24 hours,” Jones said. Jones, who was attending Arizona Western College in


Yuma at the time, was taken to an area hospital but they couldn’t determine what was wrong with her, so she was flown by helicopter to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Phoenix. “At first they thought it was meningitis,” Jones said.


“After they did several tests they found out what it’s called, transverse myelitis. It’s really rare, not a lot of people get it. I had a blood transfusion and they put me on tons of steroids.” Jones was hospitalized for nearly two weeks, but after six days she started to get all her movement back in her upper body. “It was just really, really scary,” Jones said. “I didn’t know


what was going on, I didn’t know anything they were telling me because it’s a really rare disease. I had never been sick before in my life so the whole hospital thing was not fun.” Jones had to have a spinal tap done, which she said


was the most painful thing she’s ever experienced in her life. A whole bunch of blood tests were performed as


View file photo by Ray Thomas


SHELBY JONES (4) spikes the ball for Buckeye against Greenway Sept. 15, 2009. Jones has signed a scholarship to play volleyball at Francis Marion University in Florence, S.C., after two years at Arizona Western College.


well, but the doctors never could figure out what caused the transverse myelitis, Jones said. “They caught it in time and it cleared up,” Jones said.


“I’ve gone back for numerous follow ups and MRIs. I’ve got a scar on my spinal cord but nothing else, and they said it shouldn’t come back and I’m perfectly fine.” Jones went back for checkups once every two to three


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