An 18-year-old homeless teenager who fought leukemia overcomes obstacles and earns a degree in neuroscience from a US institution
An 18-year-old child named Dallas Salas has overcome all obstacles to survive and earned a degree in neuroscience from Arizona State University in the United States, while facing homelessness and leukemia.
When Dallas was only five years old in 2010, he received a leukemia diagnosis, which is cancer of the body’s blood-forming components. According to GMA, he and his family lost their Scottsdale, Arizona, house to arson (a fire accident) in the same year.
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The event was genuinely heartbreaking and upsetting. Dallas recalled, “I used to stay up at night and just cry and just scream.”
We were going on a family vacation, so I was in California. And when we got home, we were aware of it because some of our neighbors had called, and everything had been destroyed,” he continued.
Dallas stated that he was primarily raised by his mother and that his father, who is incarcerated for his criminal activities, was never really there when he was growing up.
Although he still communicates with his father, he said that their connection is frustrating. In terms of his health, Dallas reported that he recently received word that his leukemia has entered remission following a bone marrow sample that revealed no signs of the illness.
He claimed that the anguish he felt after receiving a leukemia diagnosis at a young age, together with some more family medical history, motivated him to seek further education in the scientific and medical domains.
“You are delving deeply into the human systems when you study any part of biology or medicine. He stated, “I really want to take a hands-on approach, assisting others in resolving these problems and putting those systems we learn about into practice.”
Dallas described his mother as his support system and added that she helped him continue striving toward his objectives. “My mother was a tremendous inspiration to me, and she truly encouraged me to persevere,” he remarked.
He also gave appreciation to his mother and his success coach, Kristen Rund, who he claimed was one of his primary motivators. “We would get together once a week.And in order for me to succeed, we would discuss my plans and what to do next,” he stated.
And she was among the first persons, if not the first, with whom I discussed the ASU neuroscience program,” he continued. When it comes to his life’s motto, Dallas said he sticks to his convictions.
“Life is 90% what you make of it and 10% what happens to you if you’re going through a lot of chaotic experiences,” he stated.
