Actor Bruce Willis announces retirement after being diagnosed with aphasia

[Baz]

Very sad......only 67 years old.....one of my fav. actors........

[masraum]

Sad. And it seems like he's been working very steadily.

I guess the bright side is that he's had a great career that's still kicking.

I suspect aphasia is a very frustrating issue to have. I assume there's probably variations and degrees. Hopefully, his is something that he can manage effectively.

[sc_rufctr]

Yes this is really sad. ... The first pair of good sunglasses I bought were Persol's. Thanks Mr Willis.

But "Korben Dallas" has plenty of money and he'll most likely enjoy many years with his family and grand children.

[cabmandone]

I hadn't even heard of aphasia until I read about this or had any idea how prominent it is in society.

[flatbutt]

How the heck do you live well when you can't communicate verbally or understand what is being said by others? That sux.

[Crowbob]

Rumer went to school here for a short time (Interlochen Center for the Arts, Formerly known as Interlochen Fine Arts Camp) supposedly Bruce bought her a small house in town. He was not known to be a nice person at the time. I sat next to him in a popular bar and chatted about the weather, unaware of who he was until the barkeep informed me after he left. He seemed nice enough.

That was almost 20 years ago but Rumer still visits occasionally. Bruce has mellowed considerably, apparently.

[billybek]

I thought this was a joke thread and his illness was alopecia...

Sad, I didn't know what alopecia or aphasia was until this week.

Sounds like a nasty condition.

[PorscheGAL]

Aphasia is usually, not always, caused by some underlying condition. My best guess, with my limited nursing experience, is he has had a stroke.

[Baz]

Watching "Die Hard" on Bravo right now.

Such a good movie.....

[Crowbob]

The airport scene was filmed up here in Alpena, MI. I can’t remember but I think it was a nighttime shoot ‘em up scene near the end.

[stevej37]

I went to school with the convenience store clerk in this scene. He died this past winter and just this last weekend, they had his memorial service in my town. Kip Waldo

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by Baz

Very sad......only 67 years old.....one of my fav. actors........:

Kind of funny...that as we age, 67 becomes "only". When in high school, we felt someone at 67 was among the ancients.

Yes, Sad...must be a living hell to anyone still fully cognizant otherwise.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by PorscheGAL

Aphasia is usually, not always, caused by some underlying condition. My best guess, with my limited nursing experience, is he has had a stroke.

I heard an MD on NPR say that aphasia was caused by strokes as well and that if it was in this case, he could expect a significant recovery. Unfortunately, I think that he's been in decline for a while so an acute event is not likely.

[Crowbob]

Yes. Aphasia is not a disease. It’s a symptom. Saying someone is diagnosed with aphasia is like saying someone is diagnosed with numbness.

[Baz]

Originally Posted by Crowbob

Yes. Aphasia is not a disease. It’s a symptom. Saying someone is diagnosed with aphasia is like saying someone is diagnosed with numbness.

Just looked it up and it's described as a "disorder", according the the Johns-Hopkins site.

Aphasia is a language disorder caused by damage in a specific area of the brain that controls language expression and comprehension. Aphasia leaves a person unable to communicate effectively with others.

Many people have aphasia as a result of stroke. Both men and women are affected equally, and most people with aphasia are in middle to old age.

There are many types of aphasia. These are usually diagnosed based on which area of the language-dominant side of the brain is affected and the extent of the damage. For example:

People with Broca aphasia have damage to the front portion of the language-dominant side of the brain.
Those with Wernicke aphasia have damage to the side portion of the language-dominant part of the brain.

Global aphasia is the result of damage to a large portion of the language-dominant side of the brain.
===========

What causes aphasia?

Aphasia is caused by damage to the language-dominant side of the brain, usually the left side, and may be brought on by:

Stroke
Head injury
Brain tumor
Infection
Dementia

It is currently unknown if aphasia causes the complete loss of language structure, or if it causes difficulties in how language is accessed and used.
==============

More here:
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/aphasia

[flatbutt]

This is interesting:
If Broca in the left brain is injured or damaged (expressive aphasia), ASL speakers would have difficulty with expression or production as found in spoken language lesion. Both signer and speaker with expressive aphasia alike would struggle with production, but they could understand words/signs normally.

Likewise, if Wernicke's area in the left brain is injured or damaged (receptive aphasia), a signer and a speaker alike would have a difficult time comprehending a language, but would have no problem with language production.

What does this mean? Language is amodal; that is, language is not speech-based, but rather is brain-based, regardless of the modality (signing, speech, or writing)."

[wildthing]

So many diseases/disorders are left untreated, research unfunded, unknown to the masses, until somebody talks about it on TV, or someone famous is afflicted by it.

[JackDidley]

Bummer. He made some very good movies. The last 3 or 4 he was in, his part was pretty small. Maybe this disorder is the reason.

[Fast Freddy 944]

Hope old Bruce can hang on, sounds like a bad disease or disorder..

[sugarwood]

Originally Posted by Crowbob

Yes. Aphasia is not a disease. It’s a symptom. Saying someone is diagnosed with aphasia is like saying someone is diagnosed with numbness.

Wrong. People are diagnosed with aphasia. It's a condition, not a symptom. It's the inability to use or understand language (spoken or written) because*of a brain lesion.