One of the finest Hollywood actors, Michael J Fox, has talked about a disease that ruined legendary boxer Muhammad Ali‘s life. Parkinson’s disease ruined Ali’s life and is doing the same to Fox. Fox believes living with the disease is getting harder each day.
In an interview with Jane Pauley on ‘CBS Mornings’, Fox talked about the disease that has been there with him for over 30 years. Fox was diagnosed with early-onset of Parkinson’s in 1991. He was just 29 years old at the time.
“You’ve not squandered any of your capacity,” Pauley said. “But at some point, Parkinson’s gonna make the call for you, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, it’s, it’s banging on the door. Yeah, I mean, I’m not gonna lie. It’s gettin’ hard, it’s gettin’ harder,” Fox said. “It’s gettin’ tougher. Every day it’s tougher. But, but, that’s, that’s the way it is. I mean, you know, who do I see about that?”
Actor Michael J. Fox, 61, was diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s disease in 1991 when he was just 29. Fox tells Jane Pauley that dealing with the incurable disease is getting more challenging, and he can’t imagine living until he’s 80. More this ‘Sunday Morning.’ pic.twitter.com/hE7KeTiDUi
— CBS Sunday Morning 🌞 (@CBSSunday) April 28, 2023
Fox, however, continued to act until 2020. The “Back to the Future” and “Family Ties” actor, who is now 61 years old, said he won’t live to see 80.
“You don’t die from Parkinson’s. You die with Parkinson’s. So I’ve been thinking about the mortality of it. I’m not gonna be 80. I’m not gonna be 80.”
Fox continued to talk about the difficulties he has faced due to the disease. He said that due to a tumorous growth in his spine area, he had difficulty walking and fell. He has had surgery for that.
“(I) broke this arm, and I broke this arm, I broke this elbow,” Fox told Pauley. “I broke my face, I broke my hand.”
The Candian-American activist, who is now a retired actor, has also created The Michael J. Fox Foundation. It helps in the advancement of every promising research path to curing Parkinson’s disease.
Was boxing the cause of Muhammad Ali’s Parkinson’s disease?
One of the greatest boxers of all time, Muhammad Ali, was still boxing professionally when signs of neurological decline were noticed by observers. There have been many who feared that his profession is what led him to Parkinson’s disease. However, the fact remains that there is no conclusive proof of it.
Doctors, on the other hand, have said head trauma does increase the risk.
“It’s very hard to point in almost any individual case to what’s causing the Parkinson’s,” said Todd Sherer, the Chief Mission Officer of the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. “But there’s pretty convincing data that head injury can increase your risk for developing the disease.”
“I am the greatest, I said that even before I knew I was.” 🐐
– 56-5 record
– Olympic gold medalist
– First 3x heavyweight champSix years ago today, we lost Muhammad Ali. pic.twitter.com/VxdVicUgbU
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 3, 2022
Ali had earned magnificent accolades during his boxing career. He even won an Olympic gold medal in 1960. His boxing career included 61 bouts, out of which he won 56. Ali tragically passed away on June 3, 2016, at the age of 74, not living to see 80, just as Michael Fox fears.