Latest news with #DrMeritCudkowicz
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Eric Dane enjoys a date night with a lookalike of estranged wife Rebecca Gayheart after opening up about his ALS battle
Eric Dane was seen enjoying a dinner with a lookalike of his estranged wife Rebecca Gayheart after opening up about his battle with ALS. The Greys Anatomy star, 52, revealed in April that he's battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, which progressively weakens muscles and affects physical function. There is no cure for the condition. Eric has been married to actress Rebecca, 53, since 2005 but she filed for divorce in 2018 and the pair have been separated ever since. Rebecca withdrew her divorce petition in March ahead of Eric announcing his diagnosis and has said they co-parent well together as a family. But he was spotted out on a date with a mystery woman who bore a striking resemblance to Rebecca on Tuesday. The pair were seen kissing goodbye as he was picked up by a driver following a dinner date at Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood. Eric gave an update on his battle with ALS this week, telling Good Morning America on Tuesday: ' I'm fighting as much as I can. There's so much about it that's out of my control.' Eric is currently taking medication to slow the symptoms and he's also participating in a pioneering research study. 'I will fly to Germany and eat the head off a rattlesnake if [doctors] told me that that would help,' Dane stressed. 'I'll assume the risk.' The SAG Award winner was joined by his neurologist Dr. Merit Cudkowicz, who admitted: 'It's a hard diagnosis to hear, but I want [patients] to hear that there's hope. I never want anyone to hear that there's nothing to do because there's a lot to do.' 'That's what I got from Merit when I met her. There was a sense of hope I didn't get from other doctors that I met with,' Eric noted, adding prior doctors were just 'there to monitor my decline and that's not very helpful.' There are currently 5K people diagnosed with ALS annually, according to the CDC. 'But those numbers are going up moderately fast,' the Chief of Neurology at Mass General warned. 'It's really predicted by, like, 2040 [that] the numbers of people with ALS in the world will be increased by about 40%.' Dr. Merit listed off some of the ALS risk factors including plastics, bacteria in lakes, head trauma in sports, pesticides, military service, and 'there's many more we don't know about.' 'There's people all over the world working on this,' the Harvard Medical School professor encouraged. 'Between artificial intelligence and other imaging technology - to really be able to to subtype people - that's what gets me excited. That's all coming in the next, I think, one to two years, if not faster.' Back in 2014, the viral ice-bucket challenge raised $200million for ALS research 'in the US alone and it was spent quickly.' 'I'm very hopeful, yeah, I don't think this is the end of my story. I'm pretty resilient,' Eric beamed. 'I just don't feel, like in my heart, [that] this is the end of me.' Eric first experienced weakness in his right hand one year ago, but he 'thought maybe I'd been texting too much or my hand was fatigued' until a hand specialist eventually referred him to a neurologist. 'I have one functioning arm. My left side is functioning. My right side, [which is my dominant side], has completely stopped working,' the San Francisco-born silver fox revealed Monday. '[My left arm] is going. I feel like maybe a couple, a few more months and I won't have my left hand either. Sobering. I'm worried about my legs.' Luckily, Eric has the love and support of his wife Rebecca, who dismissed her divorce petition in March following seven years of estrangement, as well as their 15-year-old daughter Billie and 13-year-old daughter Georgia. 'I talk to her every day,' Eric emotionally said of the 53-year-old Jawbreaker alum. 'We have managed to become better friends and better parents. And she is probably my biggest champion and my most stalwart supporter. And I lean on her.' On average, ALS patients live two to five years following their first symptoms, but FDA-approved medications and physical/speech therapies might slow down the progression of the disorder.
Fox News
3 days ago
- Health
- Fox News
'Grey's Anatomy' alum Eric Dane prepared to go to extreme measures to fight ALS
Eric Dane is prepared to go to extreme measures to fight ALS. "I will fly to Germany and eat the head off a rattlesnake if [doctors] told me that that would help," the 52-year-old "Grey's Anatomy" alum told Diane Sawyer during a sit-down interview on "Good Morning America." "I'll assume the risk." During the interview, which aired Tuesday, Dane opened up about the debilitating disease and explained how he's found hope in the physician who has been leading his care. "I'm very hopeful... I don't think this is the end of my story," he said. "And whether it is or it isn't, I'm gonna carry that idea with me. "That's what I got from [Dr. Merit Cudkowicz] when I met her... there was a sense of hope I didn't get from other doctors that I met with," Dane said of his doctor, a neurologist and leading ALS researcher. Dane said that he had spoken previously with an organization that told him his doctors would be "there to... monitor my decline — and that's not very helpful." Dr. Cudkowicz said the risk factors behind the disease can include anything from environmental concerns like plastics and bacteria in lakes to sports injuries. "We worry about head trauma because we do see ALS more common in people in certain sports like football or soccer. We worry about pesticides as well. Being in the military is a risk factor," she said. "Those are the ones we know about, but there's many more we don't know about. "There's people all over the world working on this," she said, referring to ALS research. "Between artificial intelligence and other imaging technology, that's what gets me excited, and that's all coming in the next, I think, one to two years, if not faster." Dane, who revealed his diagnosis in April, said in another segment of the interview that aired Monday that he first started experiencing weakness in his right hand before seeking medical attention. "I didn't really think anything of it at the time," he told Sawyer. "I thought maybe I'd been texting too much and my hand was fatigued. A few weeks later, I noticed it'd gotten a little worse. I went and saw a hand specialist, who sent me to another hand specialist. I went and saw a neurologist, and the neurologist sent me to another neurologist and said, 'This is way above my pay grade.' "I have one functioning arm," he said. "My left side is functioning. My right side has completely stopped working. [My left arm] is going. I feel like maybe a couple, a few more months, and I won't have my left hand either. It's sobering." He said that for now, he is able to walk, but added, "I'm worried about my legs." Dane admitted that he will "never forget" the moment he was diagnosed. "I will never forget those three letters, [ALS]. It's on me the second I wake up," he said. "It's not a dream." The actor, who shares two daughters, Billie, 15, and Georgia, 13, with wife Rebecca Gayheart, said he began noticing more of the effects of his disease a few months ago during a boating trip with his daughter. After jumping into the water, Dane — a former competitive swimmer — quickly realized he was not able to swim. "[Georgia] dragged me back to the boat," said Dane, who recalled immediately breaking down in tears once on the boat. "I was just, I was, like, heartbroken." Dane also told Sawyer that he is "angry" about the diagnosis, explaining, "I'm angry because my father was taken from me when I was young, and now there's a very good chance that I'm going to be taken from my girls while they're very young." "I mean, I really, at the end of the day, just, all I want to do is spend time with my family and work a little bit if I can," he added. Fox News Digital's Janelle Ash contributed to this post.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Eric Dane issues major ALS battle update as he promises fans 'I'm fighting as much as I can'
Eric Dane has given a huge update on his battle with incurable degenerative neurological disorder, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). 'I'm fighting as much as I can,' the 52-year-old Grey's Anatomy alum told Good Morning America 's Diane Sawyer on Tuesday. 'There's so much about it that's out of my control.' Eric is currently taking medication to slow the symptoms and he's also participating in a research study. 'I will fly to Germany and eat the head off a rattlesnake if [doctors] told me that that would help,' Dane stressed. 'I'll assume the risk.' The SAG Award winner was joined by his neurologist Dr. Merit Cudkowicz, who admitted: 'It's a hard diagnosis to hear, but I want [patients] to hear that there's hope. I never want anyone to hear that there's nothing to do because there's a lot to do.' 'That's what I got from Merit when I met her. There was a sense of hope I didn't get from other doctors that I met with,' Eric noted, adding prior doctors were just 'there to monitor my decline and that's not very helpful.' There are currently 5K people diagnosed with ALS annually, according to the CDC. 'But those numbers are going up moderately fast,' the Chief of Neurology at Mass General warned. 'It's really predicted by, like, 2040 [that] the numbers of people with ALS in the world will be increased by about 40%.' Dr. Cudkowicz listed off some of the ALS risk factors including plastics, bacteria in lakes, head trauma in sports, pesticides, military service, and 'there's many more we don't know about.' 'There's people all over the world working on this,' the Harvard Medical School professor encouraged. 'Between artificial intelligence and other imaging technology - to really be able to to subtype people - that's what gets me excited. That's all coming in the next, I think, one to two years, if not faster.' Back in 2014, the viral ice-bucket challenge raised $200M for ALS research 'in the US alone and it was spent quickly.' 'I'm very hopeful, yeah, I don't think this is the end of my story. I'm pretty resilient,' Eric beamed. 'I just don't feel, like in my heart, [that] this is the end of me.' Dane first experienced weakness in his right hand one year ago, but he 'thought maybe I'd been texting too much or my hand was fatigued' until a hand specialist eventually referred him to a neurologist. 'I will fly to Germany and eat the head off a rattlesnake if [doctors] told me that that would help,' Dane stressed. 'I'll assume the risk' 'That's what I got from Merit when I met her. There was a sense of hope I didn't get from other doctors that I met with,' Eric noted, adding prior doctors were just 'there to monitor my decline and that's not very helpful' There are currently 5K people diagnosed with ALS annually, 'but those numbers are going up moderately fast,' the Chief of Neurology at Mass General warned 'I have one functioning arm. My left side is functioning. My right side, [which is my dominant side], has completely stopped working,' the San Francisco-born silver fox revealed Monday. '[My left arm] is going. I feel like maybe a couple, a few more months and I won't have my left hand either. Sobering. I'm worried about my legs.' Luckily, Eric has the love and support of his wife Rebecca Gayheart, who dismissed her divorce petition in March following seven years of estrangement, as well as their 15-year-old daughter Billie and 13-year-old daughter Georgia. 'I talk to her every day,' Dane emotionally said of the 53-year-old Jawbreaker alum. 'We have managed to become better friends and better parents. And she is probably my biggest champion and my most stalwart supporter. And I lean on her.' On average, ALS patients live two to five years following their first symptoms, but FDA-approved medications and physical/speech therapies might slow down the progression of the disorder. Audiences can next catch the Bad Boys: Ride or Die action star as Special Agent Nathan Blythe in Derek Haas' new 13-episode crime drama Countdown, which premieres June 25 on Amazon Prime Video. On April 14, Eric began reprising his role as the closeted real estate agent Cal Jacobs in the third season of HBO hit show Euphoria produced by and starring Zendaya as Ruby 'Rue' Bennett. Sam Levinson's drug-fueled drama will welcome newcomers Sharon Stone, Rosalía, Marshawn Lynch, and Kadeem Hardison in season three. But Dane got his big break portraying plastic surgeon Mark 'McSteamy' Sloan from 2006–2012 on the ABC medical drama Grey's Anatomy.
