Dolly Parton was open to ‘experimental drugs’ in final days to help future cancer patients

Dolly Parton died following a brief battle with cancer. Her nephew and representatives confirmed her death. According to Stella Parton, Dolly had expressed willingness to try experimental drugs if there was no hope for her, in the hope of helping others in the future.

Dolly Parton had given her fans a health update in October, saying she had neglected her own health while caring for her husband Carl Dean, who died in March 2025 after being ill for a while. Parton had been dealing with health issues, including kidney stones, for a couple of years before her death.

Dolly Parton's legacy includes significant philanthropic giving, including a $1 million donation to Vanderbilt for coronavirus research in 2020, which contributed to the development and distribution of the Moderna vaccine. She also founded the Imagination Library, which mails free books to children internationally, and supported disaster relief efforts.

Brief written by urgent.news from Toronto Sun, CBS News, KahawaTungu, Times of India — 4 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.