Ann Alaboud's award-winning Apple Valley bakery re-opens after her cancer battle
APPLE VALLEY, Minn. – An award-winning Twin Cities baker opened her business back up after a long battle with cancer.
WCCO first told you about a stage-4 stomach cancer diagnosis for Ann Alaboud back in May. She closed the doors of her bakery "Sweet Treasures" for two months while she underwent treatment.
While Ann was at the Mayo Clinic, doctors found unexpected tumors in her esophagus, in addition to her stomach.
"I went through eight sessions of chemotherapy, five sessions of immunotherapy, I've had five surgeries so far," Ann said.
She's on a feeding tube now, but it's not stopping her from returning to her happy place. Since reopening her doors on Saturday, they've been overwhelmed with support from loyal customers.
"First day back, we sold out," she said. "Everyone was coming in and we had to shut down a little bit earlier, but it feels good to be back."
Ann's stamina isn't full strength yet, so her husband stepped up to help her meet demand.
"I'm really proud of how much he's gone through by himself, and proved that he can do it without me [laughs]!" Ann said.
Not only is Ann celebrating being back at work, but also her appearance on the Food Network this month. She competed in a Christmas episode of the show "Big Bake." The episode, "Cakemas Carols," premiered last week, but it was filmed almost a year ago, just before her diagnosis.
"I did get a little tired on the episode, but I didn't know at that time that I had cancer," she said.
On that show, Ann needed patience under pressure. To fight cancer, all she needed was perseverance.
"The most important thing is you don't give up," she said.
A GoFundMe site has been set up to help Ann with her medical expenses.
Click here to make online orders from Sweet Treasures this holiday season, and click here to watch her compete on Food Network's "Big Bake: Cakemas Carols."