Former Northeastern standout athlete Marcus Josey finishes leukemia treatment

Diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) while still a student at Northeastern High School, Marcus Josey, 20, completed what has been more than a 3-year journey of cancer treatment Thursday.

He posted on social media Thursday evening he finished his final round of treatment for leukemia. He rang the bell at Penn State's Children's Hospital to signal the end of his treatment. 

He finished his Twitter post by writing: "... I'm glad to say that I have conquered the hardest battle of my life!"

A cancer of the blood and bone marrow, ALL is the most common form of childhood cancer — according to the Mayo Clinic. 

"Right now, it's a strange feeling," Josey said in an interview conducted by Penn State Health. "I've been doing this for so long it's hard to even comprehend that this is the end, the last treatment I will be getting. ... Hopefully, somewhere along the line it will bring me great happiness that I'm done with my treatment."

GameTimePA profiled Josey and how three York County families bonded as their teenage children fought cancer in 2015. 

Josey played basketball and started at quarterback at Northeastern. In his sophomore year he threw for more than 1,300 yards. Missing his junior year of football with injuries, he was diagnosed with cancer in April of his junior year after experiencing back pains, night sweats, fatigue and nose bleeds. 

Battling cancer and unmotivated to go to his senior homecoming, he eventually opted to go when Miss New Jersey Lindsey Giannini agreed to be his date after he contacted her after watching the Miss America pageant on television. 

"I was so touched reading his story, I just couldn't believe his bravery," Giannini told GameTimePA and the York Daily Record in October 2015. "I was so honored he would ask me. I wrote back and told them I would love to be his date. What he's going through is something not every kid has to deal with, so if there was one thing I could do to make homecoming a little more special for him, I was going to make it happen." 

Later in his senior year, and in the midst of battling cancer, he made the first shot of the game in Northeastern basketball's tip-off tournament in December. 

Josey, who attends Gettysburg College, is listed on the Bulletts' football roster even though he has not been able to play for Gettysburg. He has served as a special assistant to the coach as he continued treatment.  

"I will not be able to return to football, just because I got diagnosed with a bone disease throughout this journey with cancer," Josey said in an interview conducted by Penn State Health. "So I won't be able to get back on the field, but I still am a part of my team at Gettysburg and I still help out with the quarterbacks. ... I won't be able to play, but I do want to stay involved with football throughout my life."

  PHOTO GALLERY OF NORTHEASTERN GRAD MARCUS JOSEY