Russell Andrews recently revealed that he has been diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).
For those unaware, ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease is a fatal neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the spinal cord and brain. There is no cure for ALS, as it strips away the ability to breathe, swallow, talk, and walk by destroying motor neurons.
On Saturday, May 16, Andrews, along with his fiancée, actress Erica Tazel, appeared on The Story Is with Elex Michaelson on CNN, where he shared the devastating news about his progressive disease for the first time.
The Straight Outta Compton star said, “I am a person living with ALS. I was diagnosed in the late fall of last year.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Andrews suffered a stroke, which he now believes was an early yet glaring sign of ALS.
In addition, he experienced “twitches” occasionally, which felt like “pinched nerves” in his neck. “It was a stressful time. We didn’t work for three years, about, and then we had the back-to-back strikes and so a lot was going on,” he quipped, alluding to the actors’ strike in Hollywood in 2023.
The Punisher alum recalled, “I was not able to do things that I normally do. I was dropping cups and glasses at night. It felt like things were running up and down my arm at different times and it was the nerves.”
“It took him longer to clean the pool. The way he walked, there was just the subtle little things like that and I had questions. I was like, ‘Something is definitely wrong,’” Tazel recollected.
Andrews got himself checked by a neurologist on the recommendation of a primary care physician and it was then that he learnt that all those signs were actually subtle symptoms of ALS.
Tazel said of his diagnosis, “I was uncharacteristically calm and in a way, it was an answer to a lot of questions that we had. [There] was not a sigh of relief, but some understanding of what was happening.”
“And I looked at him across the room and I said, ‘At least now we know what it is, and I still want to be your wife,’” the Roots actress shared.
It is pertinent to mention that, according to the Muscular Dystrophy Association, people live three to five years after they are diagnosed with ALS as symptoms get severe over time.
