8-year-old dies on Christmas Eve after battling rare form of brain cancer, family shares

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF/Gray News) - A South Carolina boy battling a rare form of brain cancer has died.

Jonah Burton, 8, passed away Saturday, according to statements from his family.

“Jonah has gained his angel wings,” a statement on a Facebook page dedicated to the boy’s cancer fight said. “He has become one of our many guardian angels.”

WMBF shared Jonah’s story earlier this month. He was a year-and-a-half old when his cancer battle started.

The family said the form of cancer Jonah was battling was so rare that not much was known about it. They said doctors told them that it is a form of cancer that grows fast, which made it extremely difficult to treat. It also caused vision and hearing loss.

“It’s an HGNET with a BCOR mutation and was discovered in May 2016 and he was diagnosed in October,” said Shane Burton, Jonah’s father.

Doctors reportedly told the family in October that Jonah wasn’t expected to make it to his eighth birthday, which was on Dec. 21.

WMBF also covered a special birthday celebration for Jonah where members of the community and first responders honored him and his family, swearing him in as an honorary firefighter.

Jonah was also previously honored by the Horry County Police Department for his fight and was named an honorary junior police officer.

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