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Owen Meyer (left) and his sister Declyn Meyer (right) often travel to M Health Fairview Pediatric Specialty Clinic - Journey for cancer treatment.

For a family fighting cancer on two fronts, Journey Clinic is a home away from home

Siblings Owen and Declyn Meyer are fighting a brain tumor and a blood cancer. Former Gopher football player Casey O’Brien, a cancer survivor himself, plans to support families like the Meyers with a fundraising campaign to transform our infusion clinic.

September 02, 2021 | By Staff Writer

When 6-year-old Owen Meyer began throwing tantrums at preschool, his parents assumed they were just a normal part of growing up. But when other unusual symptoms began to appear, his parents knew something wasn’t right.

“When he would play with Legos on the floor, he wasn’t using his right hand, he’d be using his feet,” said Tim Meyer, Owen’s father. “Then, putting on mittens, he couldn’t straighten his fingers.”

Appointments with the family’s primary care doctor led to finding a golf-ball sized tumor in Owen’s brain. The family was immediately referred to the M Health Fairview Masonic Children’s Hospital for expert care.

One year into Owen’s treatment, the Meyer family faced another devastating diagnosis. Their daughter Declyn, then five years old, began experiencing unexplained fevers and pains in her legs. After several trips to their local clinic, a blood test eventually confirmed Declyn had leukemia, a cancer of the white blood cells that begins in the bone marrow. 

Once again, the family turned to Masonic Children’s Hospital for innovative and compassionate care. Together, Owen and Declyn often spent hours – and sometimes full days – receiving chemotherapy in M Health Fairview Pediatric Specialty Clinic – Journey.

Designed for treatment of a wide array of pediatric conditions, Journey Clinic is a frequent destination for children who need infusion treatments like chemotherapy for cancer or other conditions. The clinic is often a “home away from home” for families – an idea that former Gopher football player and cancer survivor Casey O’Brien understands all too well. O’Brien, who was also treated at the Journey Clinic, has organized a $1 million “Team One Four” fundraising campaign to make the clinic’s infusion center even more patient friendly by:

  • Incorporating design elements to bring in more natural light

  • Making video games, movies, books, and streaming video services available in every room

  • Expanding therapeutic programs in the clinic and the hospital

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Cancer