A teenager who has battled cancer for most of her life can't attend her high school prom because she's missed too much school.
English teen Alex Dallas, 16, has battled cancer since she was four years old. After a 12-hour operation to remove a life-threatening tumour, she was excited about the event she'd been anticipating since she was a child.
But after spending more than $650 on a dress, plus hundreds on hair and makeup, the year 11 student was told she wasn't allowed to join her friends at the dance.
"The prom's the thing you look forward to from when you're 11," she told The Mirror. "It makes all the stress of exams worth it."
Her school, Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy in Runcorn, said it made the decision with Alex's health and safety in mind - but her mother Sam Mattison told The Mirror she's been refused her night out.
"She needed this; she's just had her head sliced open in a massive operation. My daughter's been through hell and wanted to finish school on a high with all her friends, most of whom she's known since nursery."
"She's 4ft 5 (1.34m) and four stone (25kg), she's not a threat. She wanted to be treated like every other child and she's been denied her big night."
Ms Mattison said her daughter was desperate to have everything sorted by the date of the prom, and the school had severely let her down.
"They say it's a safeguarding issue and asked, 'What if she locks herself in a toilet?'".
A school spokesperson said they wanted to make sure attending the event was in Alex's best interest.
"Because she had not been into school for six months, we asked her to come in for one hour a day over a two-week period before the prom, so we could make an assessment and so she could interact with other students.
"Unfortunately she did not do so and so we reluctantly took the decision that it would not be right for her to attend the event."
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