Eric Dane’s search for answers began after he noticed he was gradually losing use of his right hand, he wrote in his memoir, My Book of Days: A Memoir of Moments. The actor, known for Grey’s Anatomy and Euphoria, initially received a diagnosis other than amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
Dane said he first consulted two hand specialists before being referred to a neurologist. The neurologist suspected a form of neuropathy but could not determine the cause, so Dane continued seeing doctors and underwent tests, including an electromyography test, or EMG.
His medical team eventually reached a diagnostic consensus of multifocal motor neuropathy, a rare autoimmune disorder that causes severe muscle weakness. Dane wrote that the diagnosis initially offered hope because available treatments were known to be effective in most cases.
After he began treatment, however, his doctors became concerned when he did not respond. Dane recalled that they told him they had been discussing ALS but needed to wait and see. He later underwent a lumbar puncture and brain scans, and received an ALS diagnosis in 2024, which he described as a “death sentence.”
Dane wrote that telling his family was especially difficult. He shared daughters Billie and Georgia with his ex-wife, Rebecca Gayheart, who told him they would face the illness together. Dane died on February 19 at age 53, after living with ALS for two years.
Sources: E! News.