HE’S KNOWN FOR playing the dreamy Dr Mark Sloan in Grey’s Anatomy and Jacob Elordi’s dad, Cal Jacobs, in Euphoria, but at just 52 years of age, Eric Dane’s life has taken a tragic turn.
Dane was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) – also known as Motor Neurone Disease – in April of this year, after first experiencing symptoms 18 months ago. ALS is a neurodegenerative disease that causing a progressive weakening of muscles. Often, muscle function is lost entirely and patients have difficulty moving, speaking, swallowing and breathing. Approximately 1,400 people in Australia are living with the disease. There is no known cure.
In an emotional interview, Dane opened up about the struggles of living with ALS, revealing he has already lost function in one arm. “My left side is functioning, my right side has completely stopped working,” he said, adding that his left arm has been getting weaker as well. “I feel like maybe a couple more months and I won’t have my left hand either. It’s sobering.”
“I didn’t really think anything of it at the time,” Dane said, of his thoughts when he first had symptoms. “I thought maybe I’d been texting too much or my hand was fatigued, but a few weeks later I noticed it got a little worse. So I went and saw a hand specialist, who sent me to another hand specialist. I went and saw a neurologist and the neurologist sent me to another neurologist and said, ‘This is way above my pay grade’.
“I will never forget those three letters [ALS],” Dane said. “It’s on me the second I wake up. It’s not a dream.”
Dane also recalled a recent, harrowing experience where he was swimming with his daughter, but realised he didn’t have the energy to stay afloat. Ultimately, Dane’s daughter had to rescue him. “She dragged me back to the boat,” Dane said. “I was like, breaking down in tears. I made sure she got back to the water with her friend and continued on with the snorkelling. I was just heart broken.”
Despite his deteriorating physical condition, Dane is still returning to Euphoria season 3 and is adamant that his story isn’t over. “In my heart, I don’t feel like this is the end for me,” Dane said. “I’m fighting as much as I can. There’s so much about it that’s out of my control.”
