Sheinelle Jones details her son's painful injury months after husband's death

Sheinelle Jones, co-host of NBC's Today, said her 16-year-old son Kayin has been kept off the soccer pitch because of a painful knee condition described as growth pains under the knees. The disclosure comes as Jones, who returned to the NBC morning program earlier this month after an extended hiatus prompted by the death of her husband, Uche Ojeh, in May from an aggressive brain cancer, spoke with colleagues Craig Melvin and Dylan Dreyer on the show's 3rd Hour. Jones described the discomfort as common for boys during growth spurts.

Jones told colleagues that Kayin has been dealing with growth pains under his knees, noting that such pains occur during growth spurts and are common for boys his age. She added, 'growth pains under his knees,' and said that 'it's common for boys when you're growing.' Despite the injury, the family still drove about 90 minutes to the game so he could be on the bench.

Jones returned to the Today show earlier this month after an extended hiatus prompted by her husband's illness. In her first interview since his death, she described the past months as a 'beautiful nightmare' and said that she is heartbroken. 'My heart is shattered,' she said. 'My heart is shattered in a million pieces. The life that I've known since I was 19 is no more.' She said that coping is day-to-day, and that she remains proud of how her kids have tried to pull through.

Ojeh was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a fast-growing cancer of the brain, and died in May after a battle with the disease. The condition begins when cells in the brain or spinal cord grow quickly, and there is no known cure, though treatments such as radiation and chemotherapy can manage it, according to Mayo Clinic. Jones and Ojeh were married in 2007; they met in the late 1990s while studying at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. 'We would have been married 18 years this month,' she said, reflecting on their life together. 'When he was dying, I would say, This sucks. This is scary. But if you asked me if this was going to be my fate, I would do it all over again.'