Back To the Future star Michael J. Fox has revealed that not only does he continue to face his ongoing battle with Parkinson’s Disease he has also been facing a new set of health scares according to MSN.
Michael J. Fox has been quite the superhero during his two-decade battle with Parkinson’s Disease. The 57-year-old actor was diagnosed with Parkinson back in 1991 keeping his struggles hidden from his fans until 1998. But, now despite his tremendous fight to cope with the disease, he has now been stricken with new serious health issues related to the disease involving his spine.
The actor opened up about his latest medical scares in a new interview released on Friday with The New York Times. Fox reveals problems from his Parkinson’s have advanced which have resulted in him falling very often and even requiring spinal surgery.
“I was having this recurring problem with my spinal cord. I was told it was benign but if it stayed static I would have diminished feeling in my legs and difficulty moving. Then all of a sudden I started falling — a lot. It was getting ridiculous. I was trying to parse what was the Parkinson’s and what was the spinal thing,” Fox stated.
“It came to the point where it was probably necessary to have surgery. So I had surgery, and an intense amount of physical therapy after. I did it all, and eventually, people asked me to do some acting. Last August I was supposed to go to work. I woke up, walked into the kitchen to get breakfast, mis-stepped and I went down. I fractured the hell out of my arm. I ended up getting 19 pins and a plate. It was such a blow,” the actor added.
Fox explained that he was trying to push himself too far, too fast after serious surgery. “It’s because I had certain optimistic expectations of myself, and I’d had results to bear out those expectations, but I’d had failures too. And I hadn’t given the failures equal weight,” he said.
Despite all the complications, hardships and adjustments Fox remains with a positive attitude. He reveals he still believes in a cure not only for himself but for millions of others who also suffer daily battles with the
disease.
Until then he reveals he will continue to fight and do everything within his power to aid his foundation, which to date has raised $800 million, in discovery.
“There’s a new drug that’s been approved that’s like a rescue inhaler for when you freeze,” he said. “Because freezing is a very real thing for Parkinson’s patients. I could be sitting here with my foot on fire and a glass of water over there on the table and all I’d be able to do is think about how good it would feel to pour that water on my foot. Treatments for that can make a huge difference in people’s lives. Now, if we can prophylactically keep Parkinson’s symptoms from developing in a person, is that a cure? No. Would I take it? Yes.”
Michael J. Fox continues to be an advocate for Parkinson’s while living life to the fullest.
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