CINCINNATI (WXIX) – A Greater Cincinnati student had dreams of playing football alongside his older brother. That dream quickly turned into a nightmare in a matter of minutes.

As a freshman, Peyton Hopewell dreamed of playing football for Madeira High School with his brother, Aiden Hopewell.

“It was my brother’s senior year. I just wanted to play one year with him. And then, that’s when it all happened,” Peyton told FOX19 NOW.

The year he was determined to make his dreams a reality, was when things took a turn for the worst.

“I just didn’t get to play the rest of the year after I got diagnosed with cancer. So, it was pretty… I hated it. I hated not playing,” Peyton said.

The diagnosis came after his mother, Jenny Hopewell, took him to get his sports physical.

“I took him for his yearly check-up, his football check-up as well, and they found a mass in his right side by pushing on him,” Jenny explained. “So, they sent him directly down to radiology at the pediatrician’s office. They did X-Rays and then came back and said we had to immediately head down to Children’s because we had to get down there like now.”

A routine check-up became a 28-week-long journey for the Hopewell family.

Doctors found a 10-pound cancerous tumor on Peyton’s right kidney, which prompted an emergency surgery to remove the tumor and one of his kidneys.

“It was a whirlwind. All of the sudden we were down at Children’s and they’re scheduling surgery on a Thursday morning,” Peyton said.

Jenny described those moments as intense and scary.

“We had no idea what was going on. I mean, we went from a normal day to our whole lives changed,” she said.

Peyton found out he would not be able to play that year with his brother, or any sport for a whole year. He said he was heartbroken.

Freshman year of high school. New school, new classes, new friends. But Peyton had a different kind of challenge ahead: A long and grueling 28 weeks of chemotherapy.

“Having to recover for a couple days and then just the next week having to go through it again. And having it be on repeat every time, every week on Tuesdays,” Peyton said, describing his routine.

Through all of the tough days in the hospital, one thing kept Peyton going: Sports. And the Cincinnati sports community made sure the Hopewell’s were well taken care of.

“It’s awesome. I mean it’s just awesome,” Peyton said. “You don’t realize until you’re in these moments just how many people that you come in contact with. It meant a lot.”

It is a feeling that the teen says is hard to articulate.

“This community is great. The people who have helped out from outside the community have been amazing and it really makes me appreciate everyone for supporting us, little deeds like that,” said Aiden.

Although he was not in a helmet and pads like he had pictured, Peyton still got the chance to be on the football field with his older brother.

“That was a lot of fun. Just loved being there with them and it meant a lot to me,” Peyton said.

Jan. 28: Another day the Hopewell’s will never forget. But this time around, it was a happy day at Cincinnati Children’s. Peyton is cancer-free and ready to be a 15-year-old again.

What started out as a dream ended up saving his life.

So what is next for Peyton?

“Just try and move on and start a new chapter in my life and see what comes next,” he said.

The teen says he has been working out with his brother, Aiden, and plans to play football next season.

He is also excited to start school again, but joked that he liked staying home.

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