Many famous personalities around the world have, or had, Parkinson's Disease. The list reads like a who's who: Mohammed Ali, Michael J. Fox, Johnny Cash, Katharine Hepburn, Billy Graham, Pierre Trudeau and Pope John Paul 2.
Parkinson's Disease is a neurological disease that can cause trembling or shaking of different parts of the body. It is progressive and can cause total paralysis and death. Most often it is associated with old age, but there is a form of the disease that afflicts people as early as their 30's. The progression of the disease and its symptoms can be very rapid or quite slow. The constellation of symptoms is different for each patient, and can change day by day or even hour by hour.
Perhaps the most famous Parkinson's patient is Mohammad Ali, the American boxer. He was a brilliant star in boxing in his prime. Because of the effects of the disease, now in his late 50's he has difficulty walking, speaking and moving his hands. The disease makes his gait very short and choppy and gives him balance problems. Despite these difficulties he carried the Olympic torch to light the flame for the 1996 games. His symptoms were obvious at that time, but he remained upbeat and cheerful, and despite his having lost the ability to smile, he appeared very happy to be present at this event.
Johnny Cash, the famous American country singer, announced that he had Parkinson's in October of 1997. The actress Katharine Hepburn's head movements late in life may have been the result of Parkinson's Disease. Margaret Bourke-White, the famous LIFE magazine photographer, died of Parkinson's in 1971.
One of the youngest patients known to the general public is Michael J. Fox. He was the star of the three very popular "Back To The Future" movies, playing an American teenager who was unwittingly transported back to 1955 where he met his parents when they were teens themselves. Just after filming of the last of these movies was finished, Michael began exhibiting the first signs of the disease. For him, the first sign was an uncontrollably twitching pinky finger. For a number of years he hid his diagnosis and did his best to conceal the effects of the disease, but in late 1998 he announced his condition.
Since that time he has undergone brain surgery and has been on a long and changing list of medications in an effort to control his symptoms. He created the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, which is dedicated to finding the cure for this terrible disease. His goal is to find that cure and put his own foundation out of business.
Michael has done many interviews over the course of his illness. In some of these interviews he seems relatively symptom-free; in others, his symptoms are very obvious. Some have assumed that he appears on-camera while symptomatic in an effort to gain pity. Michael denies that and states that it's just the unpredictable nature of the disease; sometimes the medications take effect sooner, and sometimes later. What is most admirable about this is that, whether he is very symptomatic or relatively symptom-free, Michael always handles the situation with grace, poise and wisdom. If his interviewer seems uncomfortable at the beginning of the interview, by the end it is easy to see that they have been put at ease by Michael's good humor, his upbeat acceptance of his situation and his determination to help others with his diagnosis.
Michael J. Fox has written books about his journey with Parkinson's. The first is called "Lucky Man," in which he recounts how the disease made him take a good look at life and learn to appreciate the good things much more than he had before his diagnosis. The second, "Always Looking Up - The Adventures of an Incurable Optimist," is a forward-looking and hopeful sequel.
Although each patient's symptoms are different and may change, there are many symptoms common to the disease. One of these is called the "mask face," or hypomimia. With many patients, the face becomes very still, seeming almost expressionless. The eyebrows don't move, and the patient is unable to smile. Michael J. Fox and Mohammed Ali show this symptom. Patients can also exhibit tiny handwriting and a soft, whispery voice.
No comments:
Post a Comment