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Grand Junction teen dies from cancer

Delaney Clements struggle with cancer struggle went national, met with Taylor Swift,
Delaney Clements, the Grand Junction teenager whose long battle with cancer became a national story and who got a surprise visit from international pop icon Taylor Swift, has died, said her mother.

GRAND JUNCTION (AP) – A Grand Junction teenager whose long battle with cancer became a national story and who got a surprise visit from international pop icon Taylor Swift has died, said her mother.

The Daily Sentinel of Grand Junction reported she was 13 years old.

Delaney Clements’ years-long fight with neuroblastoma rose to the spotlight in 2014 when a friend of the then-11-year-old was told she couldn’t attend classes at Caprock Academy after shaving her head in solidarity.

Officials said the friend’s bald head broke the school’s dress code. Delaney had gone bald because of chemotherapy treatment.

The story spread across the nation like wildfire, inducing outrage and calls for the school to reconsider. Administrators later voted to allow exceptions to the dress code in certain circumstances.

“With all the sorrow a heart can hold, we are beyond grief at the loss of the most amazing person in our lives,” Delaney’s mom, Wendy Campbell, posted on Facebook early Monday. “Please more than ever respect our privacy at this time as we mourn the loss of our beautiful angel.”

Wendy Campbell had been posting in recent days that her daughter’s condition was deteriorating.

Delaney was visited by Taylor Swift in December as she began hospice care and after reaching out to the singer through a YouTube video.

Swift and Delaney spent some time together in Grand Junction, posting photos of their visit on social media.



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