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“I’m going to beat this thing”

Dawn Cory benefit to be held May 4

By Fiona Green - Staff Writer | Apr 28, 2024

Dawn (Russ) Cory graduated from Wells-Easton High School in 1987, and lived in the Wells community for 34 years. She is pictured above with her three children. Left to right are Jackson Reed, Kalei Cory, Dawn Cory and Jacob Cory.

Receiving a cancer diagnosis is a life-altering event.

However, many cancer patients find that they are fighting both a debilitating disease and a mounting stack of medical bills.

Dawn (Russ) Cory, who was diagnosed with bile duct cancer, also known as cholangiocarcinoma, in October of 2023, is facing such a challenge.

“Because (bile duct cancer) doesn’t have a cure, and the only thing they offer is chemo, I do chemo weekly,” she says. “I wanted to increase my chances, so I also go to an alternative medicine doctor in Mankato. They don’t take insurance, so all my treatments are out of pocket.”

And, it’s not just the medical bills which make a cancer diagnosis so expensive. Simply traveling between treatments is a pricey endeavor.

“It’s the gas,” Cory explains. In a given month she drives to Rochester once or twice, to Mankato every other week, and to Sioux Falls once a week.

Recognizing the physical, emotional and financial strain caused by her intensive treatment regimen, Cory’s friends, daughter and sister-in-law have planned a benefit in her honor. It will be held at the Golden Bubble in Wells on Saturday, May 4, from 4:30 p.m. until midnight.

Cory anticipates it will be a fun evening, complete with a food truck – The Venue’s Wood Fired Pizzas and More – a silent and live auction, raffles, and a live band, Fat City All Stars.

“I told them, ‘If you’re having a benefit, I want a band,'” Cory laughs. “I want people to dance, and have fun.”

The event is open to anyone who would like to attend.

“I am beyond excited to see everyone at the event, and I already know the support is going to be overwhelming,” Cory says.

She currently lives in northwest Iowa, where she works at West Lyon Community School as a paraprofessional, and she spent her early childhood in Mapleton. However, Cory has a special place in her heart for Wells, where she lived for over three decades.

“I have really strong ties to Wells. I still have a lot of friends and family that live there,” Cory says. “I lived in Wells for 34 years. I was involved in the community – I was in the Jaycees, the Lion’s Club and the ambulance squad.”

Cory’s siblings live in the community, and two of her three children – Kalei, Jacob and Jackson – still have ties to the Wells area.

Kalei commutes to Wells to farm with her fiancé when she is not studying to be a nurse anesthetist. Jacob, meanwhile, studies exercise science at MSU-Mankato now that he is out of the Army. Jackson, a freshman at West Lyon, lives in Iowa with Cory.

Cory reconnected with a group of classmates from Wells-Easton a decade ago, and her old friends have helped her a great deal since her diagnosis.

“We all try to get together a few times a year,” she says. “They dote on me a lot, and call me ‘Queen Dawn.’ They are super supportive.”

Indeed, Cory is grateful for all of her friends and family, who have been a source of comfort over the past few months.

“From the very start, my family, friends, and significant other, Dennis, have collaborated to ensure I am never alone for appointments and treatments,” she says. “Everyone has pulled up their boot straps to be present, and help me when I have been vulnerable and exhausted.”

Cory says she and her family have prioritized normalcy since she received her diagnosis.

“We try to keep everything as normal as possible, so the cancer isn’t winning,” she explains. “We just try to go about our life, and be positive.”

Cholangiocarcinoma is an aggressive form of cancer, and Cory was told she had a year-long life expectancy at the time of her diagnosis.

She was diagnosed in October of last year. Prior to that, she was initially misdiagnosed with another form of cancer.

“It was originally thought to be ovarian cancer, but after further testing at both Sanford Health and Mayo Clinic, it was found to be bile duct cancer,” Cory recalls.

She underwent a full hysterectomy in October before her care team took tissue biopsies, and discovered the real identity of her cancer.

Cory says the new diagnosis was a shock, at first. However, she soon decided that she was going to fight her cancer as hard as she could.

“I’m just very positive,” she says. “I’m going to beat this thing. I’m going to survive way longer than they say I’m going to.”

Currently, Cory’s cancer is confined to certain areas of her tissue, and her care team’s goal is to delay it from spreading to the rest of her body.

“I describe it as a sleeping bear,” Cory explains.

So far, her aggressive treatment regimen has succeeded in stabilizing the cancer’s spread.

Apart from weekly chemotherapy treatments at Sanford Health in Sioux Falls, which Cory has been receiving since January, she has also been receiving alternative medicine treatments twice a month at Between the Bridges Healing Center in Mankato.

“They do infusion treatments, and I take three different supplements through them,” she says. “Basically, it opens up the doors so the chemo can get in there and do better work.”

Cory’s care team – oncologists from both Mayo and Sanford – will monitor the cancer’s progression and modify Cory’s chemotherapy regimen if the cancer is no longer responding.

Cory would also like to participate in clinical trials. She is interested in two which are being held in Texas and Massachusetts.

“Some of the good programs are really far away, but with the benefit money, I could afford to go and do them,” she says.

In the meantime, however, one of Cory’s top priorities is to enjoy spending time with her family and friends.

“I don’t want to forget about time, and how precious it is,” she explains.

To Cory, more time means being able to attend her daughter’s wedding, which is scheduled for August of next year, and meet her future grandchildren.

“People always say what they would do if they only had a year to live,” she considers. “I just try to enjoy my kids, my friends, and my family.”

Those who would like to contribute to Cory’s benefit or learn more about the event are invited to contact Jessica at 507-380-3472, or Nancy at 507-327-8205.

Well-wishers are also invited to contribute to the Dawn Cory Benefit Fund at People’s State Bank in Wells. Checks can be made out to Kalei Cory, the account manager.