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Popular TV host diagnosed with same condition as Bruce Willis

<p>Popular American TV host Wendy Williams has shared her diagnosis after being plagued by "hurtful rumours". </p> <p>The 59-year-old's medical team announced in a lengthy statement that she has been diagnosed with aphasia and frontotemporal dementia: the same conditions actor Bruce Willis is battling.</p> <p>The news comes after Williams' family confirmed she had checked in to a facility to treat cognitive issues.</p> <p>“Questions have been raised at times about Wendy’s ability to process information and many have speculated about Wendy’s condition, particularly when she began to lose words, act erratically at times, and have difficulty understanding financial transactions,” her medical team said.</p> <p>They said Williams' symptoms first began in 2023, and was diagnosed with the neurological conditions just weeks later after undergoing a series of tests. </p> <p>Her team said both conditions have “already presented significant hurdles in Wendy’s life”.</p> <p>“Wendy would not have received confirmation of these diagnoses were it not for the diligence of her current care team, who she chose, and the extraordinary work of the specialists at Weill Cornell Medicine,” they said.</p> <p>“Receiving a diagnosis has enabled Wendy to receive the medical care she requires.”</p> <p>Williams chose to share the news to “advocate for understanding” and to “raise awareness” for the difficult conditions. </p> <p>“Unfortunately, many individuals diagnosed with aphasia and frontotemporal dementia face stigma and misunderstanding, particularly when they begin to exhibit behavioural changes but have not yet received a diagnosis,” her team said.</p> <p>“There is hope that with early detection and far more empathy, the stigma associated with dementia will be eliminated, and those affected will receive the understanding, support, and care they deserve and need."</p> <p>“Wendy is still able to do many things for herself. Most importantly she maintains her trademark sense of humour and is receiving the care she requires to make sure she is protected and that her needs are addressed."</p> <p>“She is appreciative of the many kind thoughts and good wishes being sent her way.”</p> <p>The TV presenter has previously been open with her medical battle with Graves’ disease and lymphedema, as well as other significant challenges related to her health.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

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Explainer: what is aphasia?

<div class="copy"> <p>After racking up more than 100 films over the span of four decades, Bruce Willis is <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-31/hollywood-star-bruce-willis-steps-away-from-acting-aphasia/100953764" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">closing out</a> his stellar acting career. In a statement released by his family, his withdrawal from the spotlight has been attributed to a recent diagnosis with a condition called aphasia.</p> <p>Never heard of aphasia before? You’re in good company. In a <a href="https://www.aphasia.org/2020-aphasia-awareness-survey/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2020 survey on aphasia awareness</a>, 86.2% of participants had never heard of the condition. Of the few who did recognise the term, a third either had aphasia themselves or personally knew someone who did.</p> <p>The disorder simply doesn’t have the broad recognition of <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/parkinsons-patients-trained-to-respond-to-placebos/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Parkinson’s disease</a>, cerebral palsy or multiple sclerosis.</p> <p>And yet, aphasia is more common than any of these, affecting over a million Australians – and twice that number in the US.</p> <p>So what is it?</p> <h2>Aphasia explained</h2> <p>Aphasia is an acquired communication disorder that impairs a person’s ability to process language – sufferers struggle to speak and to understand others, and often also experience difficulties with reading and writing.</p> <p>But there’s no one-size-fits-all description of the disorder, and its severity can be wide ranging. In mild cases, aphasia may be barely noticeable. In more severe cases, communication can become near impossible.</p> <p>Importantly, aphasia is not a disease, but rather a symptom of brain damage. This means that there’s no one single cause of the condition. Instead, aphasia may occur suddenly, often as a result of a stroke or head injury, or may creep up insidiously as a side effect of a brain tumour, infection or dementia.</p> <p>The exact location of damage to the brain determines the nature and severity of the resulting language dysfunction. Generally, aphasia can be divided into three broad categories:</p> <p><strong>Broca aphasia</strong>: patients have damage to <strong>front</strong> portion of the language-dominant side of the brain. They may eliminate simple words, like “and” and “the”, from their speech, but can still construct meaningful – if abbreviated – sentences. The patient knows what they wish to say, but simply can’t find the words to say it.</p> <p><strong>Wernicke aphasia</strong>: patients have damage to the <strong>side</strong> portion of the language-dominant portion of the brain. They often speak in rambling, confusing sentences, adding unnecessary words or creating entirely new words of their own. The patient can hear spoken words without difficulty, or read words in print, but struggles to make sense of them.</p> <p><strong>Global aphasia</strong>: patients with this most severe presentation have more profound difficulties with all aspects of speaking or comprehending language.</p> <h2>Aphasia doesn’t indicate diminished intelligence</h2> <p>The aphasia awareness study offered another telling insight, beyond the lack of recognition of the disorder. Nearly half of all respondents strongly correlated intellectual capacity with speech ability, believing that “if a person has difficulties with speech, they also have intellectual deficiencies”.</p> <p>While it’s easy to assume that the loss of speech correlates with the loss of an internal dialogue, and consequently of a thinking mind, this is absolutely not true of patients with aphasia – and it’s an assumption that can make interactions with aphasia patients unnecessarily challenging.</p> <p>Provided the brain injury that caused the aphasia hasn’t impacted other areas of the brain, the damage wrought in the language centre of the brain doesn’t affect what patients remember, or how they think. They retain the same personality – the same bad jokes, strong opinions, and lifetime of stories are still present inside the mind, but now the patient struggles to make them manifest in the external world.</p> <h2>Treating aphasia</h2> <p>Aphasia isn’t necessarily a life-long diagnosis. The brain is a remarkably flexible and resilient organ, and many people with aphasia see dramatic improvements in their language abilities with dedicated treatment.</p> <p>Research has shown that communication abilities can continue to improve for many years after traumatic injury and the onset of aphasia, though progress is largely determined by the extent of the injury. In slow-developing cases, such as those associated with the onset of dementia, recovery may not be possible – but targeted therapy may still assist in developing ways to build on remaining language abilities, incorporating alternative means of communication such as sign language or pictures.</p> <h2>Increasing aphasia awareness</h2> <p>The tragedy of aphasia lies in its shrouding silence – shut inside their own minds, sufferers struggle to convey the nature of their experience. As a result, despite its prevalence, aphasia is largely unknown in the general community.</p> <p>This can make life incredibly challenging for aphasic patients and their carers, not only in their personal sphere, but in accessing social and medical services.</p> <p>Increasing aphasia awareness is a vital step towards alleviating some of the difficulties that patients face. According to the awareness survey, among those who were aware of the condition, movies and television were one of the most commons means of introduction. Tragic though his diagnosis is, Willis’s publicly declared diagnosis with aphasia could make significant inroads in garnering the crucial awareness needed for this silent struggle. His acting career will be widely celebrated, but this may yet be his most vital contribution to the world.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p> <p><em><img id="cosmos-post-tracker" style="opacity: 0; height: 1px!important; width: 1px!important; border: 0!important; position: absolute!important; z-index: -1!important;" src="https://syndication.cosmosmagazine.com/?id=186949&amp;title=Explainer%3A+what+is+aphasia%3F" width="1" height="1" data-spai-target="src" data-spai-orig="" data-spai-exclude="nocdn" /></em></div> <div id="contributors"> <p><em>This article was originally published on <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/body-and-mind/aphasia/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cosmosmagazine.com</a> and was written by Jamie Priest. </em></p> </div>

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First photos of Bruce Willis snapped after shock Aphasia diagnosis

<p>Die Hard legend Bruce Willis has been snapped smiling with his wife Emma Heming Willis in the first public photos that have emerged since his retirement announcement.</p> <p>Last week, the 67-year-old’s family announced he was "stepping away" from acting after being diagnosed with aphasia, a rare language disorder that's caused by brain damage and affects communication ability.</p> <p>The couple's daughter, Mabel Ray, aged 10, took the photos which were posted by Heming Willis on Instagram and show them sitting on a fallen tree trunk and smiling at each other.</p> <p>"Mom &amp; Dad in their favorite habitat 🏔🥾 #offthegrid," the model captioned the shots.</p> <p>The couple, who share daughters Mabel Ray and seven-year-old Evelyn Penn, celebrated their 13th wedding anniversary in March.</p> <p>Following last week's announcement which was shared in a joint family statement across Willis' wife, ex-wife Demi Moore and children's social media accounts, Heming Willis thanked fans for their support.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/Cbu-T0VAukL/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Cbu-T0VAukL/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Emma Heming Willis (@emmahemingwillis)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>"Your love, support, compassion, prayers really help. I'm grateful. Thank you from the bottom of my heart," she wrote in an Instagram Story.</p> <p>Celebrities across the globe have been thinking of Bruce following his diagnosis reveal, with Jamie Lee Curtis writing, "Grace and guts! Love to you all!"</p> <p>"My heart goes out to Bruce, and all of the family. So thankful you shared this with us. Keeping you all in our prayers," Rita Wilson shared.</p> <p><em>Images: Instagram</em></p>

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Bruce Willis forced to retire after medical diagnosis

<p>Bruce Willis has announced he will be stepping back from acting after a shocking medical diagnosis. </p> <p>The 67-year-old has been diagnosed with aphasia: a medical condition that can affect a person’s ability to speak, write and understand language, both verbal and written.</p> <p>“To Bruce’s amazing supporters, as a family we wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities,” Bruce’s family wrote in a statement shared to each of their Instagram accounts.</p> <p>They added that he will be “stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him”.</p> <p>“This is a really challenging time for our family and we are so appreciative of your continued love, compassion and support,” the family continued. </p> <p>“We are moving through this as a strong family unit, and wanted to bring his fans in because we know how much he means to you, as you do to him."</p> <p>“As Bruce always says, ‘Live it up’ and together we plan to do just that,” concluded the statement, which was signed by his wife Emma Heming, his ex-wife Demi Moore, and his five children, Rumer, 33, Scout, 30, Tallulah, 28, Mabel, 9, and Evelyn, 7.</p> <p>Willis has multiple projects that he has completed that are now in the stage of post-production, including <em>Vendetta</em>, <em>Fortress: Sniper’s Eye</em> and <em>White Elephant</em>.</p> <p>His upcoming project <em>Fortress 3</em> is currently in pre-production, with no announcement on the future of the film. </p> <p>Rumours of Willis' health declining were first pushed by OK! magazine in January 2021, when the actor was kicked out of a Los Angeles chemist for not wearing a mask during Covid-19 restrictions. </p> <p>He later apologised, saying in a statement that it was “an error in judgement”.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

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