Second-year College student XB Cox, known to some as "Boone," died Friday after battling leukemia for more than nine months.
Cox, an avid runner, was diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia Jan. 2 after experiencing a series of troubling symptoms including bumps on his head, uncontrollable bleeding and a fever, according to his sister, 17-year-old Jordan Cox.
Cox took medical leave of absence from the University last winter after his diagnosis. He had not yet declared his major but was considering a career in law, his sister said.
Jordan Cox said her brother had a positive attitude toward his disease.
"He thought himself lucky in a way because he had so many friends and so much support," she said. "He wasn't really thinking about the negative aspects of it."
Cox hoped his illness could be cured and that doctors could learn from his case, his sister added.
Neil Salmons, Cox's friend since high school and second-year Engineering student, also said he was impressed by Cox's reaction to the illness.
"He asked 'why me,' but it was a question, not a complaint," Salmons explained, calling Cox's reaction "more of a curiosity thing than a self-pity thing."
After his diagnosis, Cox's condition improved until summertime, when new leukemia cells appeared in his nervous system. At that point, doctors decided a bone marrow transplant would be necessary.
Cox received a transplant Aug. 10, but his body rejected the cells.
Salmons said Cox was optimistic during the whole ordeal.
"Throughout the whole nine months, he never got depressed or angry or down or frustrated," Salmons said.
Cox was scheduled to receive a second marrow transplant Friday, his sister said. Cox was given the cells even though it was clear he was not going to live. His sister called the transplant "symbolic," because Cox had previously told his family he would stay in the hospital until he received the transplant.
Cox's classmate, second-year College student Jonathan Yagel, remembered Cox as a gregarious and witty acquaintance. Yagel noted that their shared astronomy course last year could be dry at times, but Cox "would always make funny comments and could lighten up any situation better than almost anybody."
Yagel noted that he looked forward to seeing Cox in class each day.
"He's just the kind of person that I always enjoyed being around," Yagel said. "The world lost a lot when it lost XB."
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