The BMW Dallas Marathon is just weeks away, and for one North Texas teen, crossing the finish line will mean far more than a personal record.

Seventeen-year-old Riley Morrison is preparing for her first marathon, something she once believed would never be possible. Less than two years ago, even walking could cause pain.

"If I walked for too long, it would start to ache on my right side, and my posture was so bad, I stood like this all the time," she said.

Morrison was diagnosed with scoliosis in seventh grade. Even with a back brace, the curves in her spine kept progressing.

"My back was shaped like an 'S', so I had my biggest curve at 60 degrees, and my other was 20 degrees," she said.

By last January, surgery at Scottish Rite for Children had become her only option.

"It was like

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