In 1964, physicians at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) delivered a catastrophic prognosis to a mother named Florence “Rusty” Tullis. Her young son, Roy L. “Rocky” Dennis, had undergone a routine tonsillectomy at age two when technicians noticed abnormalities in his X-rays.
After a year of frequent visits to the medical center, specialists diagnosed the child with craniodiaphyseal dysplasia (CDD). This extremely rare sclerotic bone disorder caused calcium to accumulate excessively in the skull, resulting in the gradual compression of the brain.
Based on the seven known cases in medical history at the time, doctors predicted the pressure would destroy the boy’s vision and hearing before terminating his life prior to his seventh birthday. Rocky Dennis did not die at age seven; instead, he lived for nearly a decade beyond the medical deadline.
A Medical Philosophy
Following the diagnosis, Rocky lived in Covina and Glendora, California. His home environment included his parents, his half-brother Joshua, and a rotating group of his mother’s biker friends who provided a secondary support system.
As the bone tissue continued to distort his facial features and press against his cranial nerves, Rusty enforced a strict, unconventional approach to pain management. She operated on the philosophy that if one could make oneself sick, one could also make oneself well.
When Rocky suffered from severe headaches caused by intracranial hypertension, Rusty sent him to his room with instructions to use biofeedback and breathing exercises to resolve the pain, rather than offering sympathy.
Challenging the Limits
By age six, the physical effects of CDD progressed as predicted, and doctors declared Rocky legally blind. An ophthalmologist informed Rusty that her son would never learn to read. In response, Rusty handed Rocky a book, which he read aloud to the physician, stating simply that he did not believe in being blind.
When it came time for schooling, administrators attempted to place him in a segregated institution for students with disabilities, citing concerns that his appearance would disturb other parents. Rusty refused this placement and campaigned for his enrollment in the public school system.
Although he began his education behind his peers, he rapidly caught up, eventually graduating from Sandburg Junior High as an honor student. During these years, surgeons offered him plastic surgery to correct his facial deformities, but Rocky declined, asking his mother, “Who will I see in the mirror if I change my face?”
The Final Morning
By September 1978, Rocky’s health had deteriorated significantly, requiring him to use a wheelchair. On the evening of October 3, the family dined at a restaurant, where his physical weakness became apparent to those present. Later that night, he complained of a headache.
Consistent with her long-standing method, Rusty sent him to his room to “make himself well.” The next morning, October 4, Rusty heard him moving around at 6:00 a.m. However, when she checked on him at 10:00 a.m., the sixteen-year-old had died. His body was subsequently donated to the UCLA genetics research center for study.
In 1964, UCLA doctors viewed X-rays of a toddler named Rocky Dennis and predicted his death by age seven.
A rare disorder was building bone inside his skull, crushing his brain.
Yet, Rocky defied this medical deadline, surviving nearly a decade longer than experts promised… pic.twitter.com/ZlnUi9LiP5
— Fascinating True Stories (@FascinatingTrue) November 23, 2025