LOOK: Dez Bryant sends heartfelt message on Demaryius Thomas CTE news
After news broke Tuesday that former Denver Broncos receiver Demaryius Thomas was posthumously diagnosed with CTE, Dez Bryant was heartbroken. The former Dallas Cowboys star took to Twitter to address the issue of CTE in football that he believes not enough former players are talking about.
“DT88 my heart weak bro…” Bryant wrote in his tweet. “It’s a lot of us living with CTE and the NFL know it…most importantly the Athletes who have those symptoms are scared to speak… 1 thing about me ain’t living no false life…my love and support for athletes are on a much deeper level than most…”
Demaryius Thomas was diagnosed with Stage 2 chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) on Tuesday, nearly seven months after his death in December, according to The New York Times. The Times also reported family members noticed some signs of CTE late in Thomas’ live, including memory loss, paranoia and isolation.
Thomas also dealt with seizures over the last few years of his life and although the official cause of death hasn’t been declared, The Times reported doctors said he could have died from a seizure.
After Thomas’ death, his family confirmed his bouts with seizures and believed that’s what happened.
“He had been suffering from seizures for over a year, and we believe he had a seizure when he was showering,” Thomas’ cousin LaTonya Bonseigneur told the AP. “We’re not sure when he died. We just spoke with him yesterday.”
According to a 2017 study, 110 of 111 (99%) former NFL players whose brains were examined exhibited evidence of CTE. Additionally, 91% of former college football players in the study and 21% of former high school players showed signs of the disease.
CTE is commonly found in individuals who experience repeated head traumas during their lifetime, per the Mayo Clinic. As of now, it can only be diagnosed during life in rare cases for individuals with high-risk exposures. Some of the known symptoms include memory loss, behavioral changes and motor skill impairment.
Thomas’ case is another unfortunate example of the toll that the physicality of the game can have on players long after their career. He had been retired from football for only six months prior to his death. Until the research on CTE catches up, the most important thing is for players such as Bryant to continue to speak out about the disease and any experiences they may have with it.