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Bruce Willis has been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia, his wife Emma Heming Willis shared via Instagram on Thursday.
Heming Willis, 44, explained that the 67-year-old actor’s condition has worsened since the family first revealed his aphasia diagnosis last year.
“Since we announced Bruce’s diagnosis of aphasia in spring 2022, Bruce’s condition has progressed and we now have a more specific diagnosis: frontotemporal dementia (known as FTD),” she wrote.
“Unfortunately, challenges with communication are just one symptom of the disease Bruce faces. While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis.”
Frontotemporal dementia is an all-encompassing term for a group of brain disorders that threatens the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain. This means that parts of these lobes atrophy, and the shrinking of these areas can cause speech issues, emotional problems and changes in personality.
Matt Stone/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Bruce Willis and wife Emma Heming Willis in 2008.
Other symptoms can include loss of motor skills — problems walking, swallowing or muscle spasms. Symptoms tend to get worse over time.
The causes of FTD are largely unknown, but some genetic mutations have been linked to the disease. However, more than half of people with the condition have no family history of dementia. Patients typically begin to notice symptoms between 40 – 65 years of age, but it can affect people who are younger. It is the most common form of dementia for people under 60.
FTD is often misdiagnosed as Alzheimer’s disease. There is no single test to diagnose the disease, so doctors must evaluate patients’ reflexes, memory and problem solving skills among other health factors to come to a diagnosis. An estimated 50,000 to 60,000 people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with an FTD disorder, according to The Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration.
There are currently no treatments or a cure for FTD, but medications may aid with the symptoms.
Heming Willis wrote that Bruce would want to share his struggle to help others.
“Bruce always believed in using his voice in the world to help others, and to raise awareness about important issues both publicly and privately,” she said. “We know in our hearts that – if he could today — he would want to respond by bringing global attention and a connectedness with those who are also dealing with this debilitating disease and how it impacts so many individuals and their families.”