Eric Dane revealed first ALS symptom he noticed that led to diagnosis before death aged 53
Grey’s Anatomy star Eric Dane has died aged 53, nearly a year after he disclosed his ASL diagnosis with the public.
The news of his passing has been confirmed by his family.
“With heavy hearts, we share that Eric Dane passed on Thursday afternoon following a courageous battle with ALS,” Dane’s family’s statement shared with People read. “He spent his final days surrounded by dear friends, his devoted wife, and his two beautiful daughters, Billie and Georgia, who were the center of his world.”
“Throughout his journey with ALS, Eric became a passionate advocate for awareness and research, determined to make a difference for others facing the same fight. He will be deeply missed, and lovingly remembered always. Eric adored his fans and is forever grateful for the outpouring of love and support he’s received. The family has asked for privacy as they navigate this impossible time.”
The ASL Association describes the condition as a “rare, terminal neurodegenerative disorder that results in the progressive loss of both upper and lower motor neurons that normally control voluntary muscle contraction.”
Speaking of his diagnosis, Dane told People at the time, “I have been diagnosed with ALS.
“I am grateful to have my loving family by my side as we navigate this next… I kindly ask that you give my family and I privacy during this time.”
Dane missed this year’s Emmys. He was expected to join the series’ cast for their 20th anniversary, but was absent from stage due to a fall related to his ASL diagnosis. “ALS is a nasty disease,” he said. “So I was in the hospital during the Emmys getting stitches put in my head.”
He said he was “really upset” about missing the milestone moment, but added that “there was nothing I could do about it.
“It would have been great to see Jesse and get reunited with some of my peers, and to be able to present in front of my colleagues, I thought, would have been a special moment.”
Since his diagnosis, Dane had been seen a few times in Los Angeles. During an occasion, he was photographed with his wife, Rebecca Gayheart, and their 13-year-old daughter, Georgia, enjoying dinner at a sushi restaurant in West Hollywood. He was in a wheelchair.
Rebecca and Eric also shared 15-year-old Billie. In an interview with People magazine in September, Rebecca said the news had been especially hard on their daughters.
“I mean, it’s heartbreaking,” she told People. “My girls are really suffering, and we’re just trying to get through it. It’s a tough time.”
Back in June, Eric Dane opened up about the first ALS symptoms he experienced.
Appearing on Good Morning America, he revealed, “I started experiencing some weakness in my right hand, and I didn’t really think anything of it at the time.
“I thought maybe I had been texting too much or my hand was fatigued. But a few weeks later I noticed it had gotten a little worse, so I went and saw a hand specialist, and he sent me to another hand specialist.”
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The actor continued, “I went and saw a neurologist and they sent me to another neurologist and said this is way above [his] pay grade.”
Doctors were only able to diagnose him nine months after he had experienced the initial symptoms.
“I have one functioning arm, my dominant side is [my right], my left side is functioning, my right side is completely stopped working.”
Dane concluded. “My left arm is going, I feel like a couple few more months and I wont have my left either, it is sobering.”
He is the latest high-profile personality to pass away from ALS. Others who have suffered from the same disease include baseball legend Lou Gehrig, after whom the disease is often named Lou Gehrig’s disease, physician Stephen Hawking, Sesame Street co-founder Jon Stone, and jazz bassist Charles Mingus.
Fellow actors paid their tributes, honoring the life and legacy of Dane.
Patrick Dempsey, who played Dr. Derek Shepherd, described him as being “a joy to work with.”
“He was the funniest man – he was such a joy to work with and I want to just remember him in that spirit because any time he was on set, he brought so much fun to it. He had a great sense of humour,” Dempsey told Virgin Radio. He added that Dane was “wickedly intelligent”, and also did “an incredible job at bringing awareness to this horrible disease.”
Kim Raver, who plays Dr. Teddy Altman in the series, wrote, “During filming he’d get this twinkle in his eye and with a mischievous look, he would deliver with perfect comedic timing, a line of dialogue that would floor you.”
Kevin McKidd, aka trauma surgeon Owen Hunt, posted on Instagram, “rest in peace, buddy.”
Among other actors who paid their tributes are Euphoria creator Sam Levinson, Alyssa Milano, Ashton Kutcher, and Nina Dobrev.
In an interview for Netflix titled Famous Last Words filmed prior to his passing, Dane revealed his touching final words to his wife. The interview was set to be released following his passing.
“So with Rebecca, who you met and fell in love with quickly – how would you describe the essence of that relationship and that love affair?” the interview inquired.
As reported by Hello!, the late actor revealed, “Well, we still love each other deeply. I just think we don’t wanna live with each other. But there’s a lot of love there. I’ll never…I will have never, by the time anybody sees this, have fallen in love with another woman, as deeply as I feel in love with Rebecca. She’s the mother of my children and the whole way that thing came about it was so organic and fortuitous.”
He added: “I met Rebecca and I turned to her friend and I said: ‘I’m gonna marry that girl.’” The interviewer responded: “How did you know?”
“I have no idea. I have no idea how serious I was in that moment, but I said that ,and her friend said: ‘No way. She’s never breaking up with her fiancé. They’re getting married. They’ve been together since they were 15.’ You know, four years later, I married her. I knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. It was supposed to happen.”
His fans were deeply touched by his words and his strength.
Rest in peace, Eric Dane.
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