The Star: July 11, 2024

Thursday July 11 2024 The Star
Latest Canterbury news at starnews.co.nz
NEWS 9
Katie passed peacefully away’
Others included: “Katie’s
infectious smile and laughter is
how we will remember her, plus
her amazing horse and handling
skills and passion for hard work!”
“Such a lovely kind and happy
person gone way too soon.”
“A true fighter.”
In an interview with The Star
in November, Cox said she had
thought nothing of a cough she
developed in early September.
It was the middle of winter,
one of the bleakest and wettest
Canterbury had had for some
time.
Cox could count the number of
times she had been to a doctor on
one hand. Training and driving
harness racing horses had kept
her fit and healthy.
But the cough stuck around
and by late September, she had
developed chest pains. She
decided to go to the doctor.
“All it was, was a bit of a cough,
bit of a winter cough, you know it
wasn’t that much. I just thought
I’ll go to the doctor and get some
antibiotics,” Cox said.
“The doctor gave me some
antibiotics and thought it was
most likely a bit of a chest
infection.”
When she returned to the
doctor for a new prescription, her
doctor sent her for a chest x-ray
as a precaution.
Having never smoked or vaped
Cox did not think much of it.
The x-ray did show some
blockage in her lung, but again
she was not worried.
“When it showed my lung
was a bit blocked there was a
possibility it could have just been
a bit of grit or something off the
track.
“It wasn’t until they did the CT
scan and biopsy that we knew it
was cancerous.”
It was about a month between
the first doctor’s visit and the
cancer diagnosis.
Cox, who was reluctant to talk
about the day she found out the
diagnosis, was with her mum
Wendy, and partner, when the
doctor delivered the news that
she had lung cancer.
She still did not believe it as she
was being told.
“We thought they must have
had the wrong person,” Cox said.
Further results showed she
had a genetic mutation known as
Exon 20 – which accounts for up
to approximately one in 30 lung
cancers.
Exon 20 mutations are resistant
to drugs used to treat other forms
of lung cancer.
Wendy said her daughter’s
spirit was “willing” to the
end – and she was even giving
directives about her horse Spy Da
Moment’s training “as she was
RISING STAR: Katie Cox after
winning with It’s Tough at
Addington last year.
Above – Cox watched her
horse Spy Da Moment come
second at Addington the
Friday before her death.
PHOTOS: RACE IMAGES,
HRNZ
entering the ambulance”.
“Katie was so appreciative of
the fantastic support from all
who knew her, and supporters
she hadn’t even met,” she
continued.
Since 2012, Cox had 37
training and 108 driving wins
with her biggest moment being
her Group 2 success in 2023
when she trained and drove
It’s Tough to win the Welcome
Stakes at Addington.
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