DEBBIE DAILEY

Beating Breast Cancer and Helping Others

Debbie Minford Dailey turned a cancer diagnosis into a mission to help other women.

“I Wanted to Have a Party to Benefit the Cancer Institute”

In January 2009, Debbie Minford Dailey, a second-grade teacher at Doylestown’s Our Lady of Mount Carmel School, was diagnosed with Stage 1 HER2-positive breast cancer, an aggressive form of the disease.

She had underwent a lumpectomy that February, and spent her 50^th birthday receiving chemotherapy at Doylestown Health’s Cancer Institute.

“I said to my husband, “If everything goes well, next year I want to have a party,’ ” recalls Debbie. “But I didn’t need anything; instead, I wanted to have a party to benefit the Cancer Institute.”

The Best Overall Plan… Right in Your Backyard

This year marked the sixth annual “Double-D” dance and silent auction. Debbie coordinates the popular fundraiser with her family and a handful of friends – including many generous families and colleagues from Our Lady of Mount Carmel and the community at large. The event has raised over $100,000 since its inception, and proceeds from the fundraiser support Doylestown Health’s Cancer Institute and its various programs.

After being diagnosed, Debbie surveyed her area treatment prospects and concluded that the best overall plan would be found right in her backyard at Doylestown Health’s Breast Center.

“I felt so fortunate to receive such quality care close to home,” says Dailey, fully recovered and cancer-free since 2010.

“You Can Create Something Positive”

Citing her own cancer experience, Debbie wants to help other breast cancer patients who incur expenses not otherwise covered by insurance, or those who seek additional therapies and holistic support.

“It’s my passion and my purpose to be able to make a difference in the life of another woman who is undergoing what I went through,” Debbie says.

For Debbie, drawing on her own experiences to make a difference in the lives of others is immeasurably rewarding. “There is nothing pretty about cancer,” she says. “Going through it is hard. You can’t change it, but through this horrible thing, you can create something positive.”

Article featured in the Doylestown Health Foundation 2015 Donor Report

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About Doylestown Health Foundation

As the philanthropic arm of Penn Medicine Doylestown Health, the Doylestown Health Foundation raises funds to safeguard the future of excellence in patient care and to improve the quality of life for all members of our Central Bucks County community and beyond.