Sheriff Jeremy Thornton-Pancreatic Cancer

My name is Kate, one of Sheriff Jeremy Thornton’s 3 daughters and I am fundraising to help with medical expenses and to further assist pancreatic cancer research in hopes that someday we will find a cure and develop early detection.

Jeremy was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic pancreatic cancer on December 8th, 2022 at the age of 53. On November 25th he went in to see his primary care physician for pain, fatigue and reoccurring low-grade evening fevers of about 99. CT scans later revealed suspicious lesions which biopsy determined was pancreatic cancer. At the time of diagnosis the cancer had already spread to his liver, lung, kidney and lymph nodes, giving a poor prognosis. He kept his head held high and said he was going to fight as hard as he can. After meeting with the oncologist, he was told his life expectancy would be up to 3-4 months with no treatment. With treatment, hopes of up to 9 to 12 months, it would not cure the cancer but help prolong his life and decrease symptoms. He decided to go with the most aggressive chemotherapy, receiving only one round before his passing.

Unfortunately with this aggressive type of cancer, Jeremy spent a total of 10 nights in and out of the hospital trying to best manage his pain and other symptoms associated with the cancer.

On January 4th he was escorted home to his farm on Hospice by several local law enforcement agencies where he could be in peace with his family. He passed away January 5th 2023.

His wishes were to live long enough to get all his affairs in order to reduce the stress on mom. He was just re-elected to serve his 4th term as sheriff for Norman County. He had been a Deputy several years prior to becoming sheriff, totaling just shy of 28 years of service on the Norman County sheriffs department. His plan was to retire there after spending time with his family including his four young grandsons. Unfortunately, time ran short.

Pancreatic cancer silently grows undetected for 7 to 10 years, and is currently the 3rd leading cause of cancer related deaths. By the year 2030 it is expected that pancreatic cancer will rise to the 2nd leading cause of cancer deaths.