Football Hall of Famer Brett Favre says he has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease

By Thomas Schlachter, CNN

(CNN) — Football Hall of Famer Brett Favre revealed Tuesday he was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

The famed quarterback was speaking in front of the House Ways and Means Committee in a hearing on reforming Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), where he was called to testify before Congress about welfare misspending.

“Sadly, I also lost an investment in a company that I believed was developing a breakthrough concussion drug I thought would help others and I’m sure you’ll understand, while it’s too late for me because I’ve recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s, this is also a cause dear to my heart,” the quarterback said.

Favre had a storied NFL career, most notably playing for the Green Bay Packers. While with the Packers, Favre won the Super Bowl in the 1996-97 season and won back-to-back-to-back MVPs from 1995-1997.

Last month, Favre told The Megyn Kelly Show that head injuries and concussions were not treated in the way that they are now during his playing career and discussed the potential impact that could have on his life.

“At least several times a week there’s this fear of what tomorrow will bring,” Favre said. “And that wasn’t the case when I was playing, first of all, because at that point concussions were not looked at, it was just a minor bump, get your butt back in the game, go play.

“I don’t blame anybody because then no one thought concussions were a major issue, including me.

“I’ll think, ‘Boy, I probably haven’t done myself many favors.’ Would I do it the same way over again if I had the chance or would I change the way I played or how long I played? I don’t know, maybe I would have been more cautious,” he added.

Favre also said he that suffered a concussion in his last ever NFL play and was out for a minute or two.

While the 54-year-old said that he is still able to do a lot of what he enjoys, he also told Kelly that he had noticed some changes.

“I think there’s some memory issues, I think sometimes my speech is affected. Is that a result of the concussions and football or just being over 50? And maybe the answer is a little bit of both,” he said.

Favre has previously said that he could have experienced “thousands” of concussions across his 20-season NFL career.

Findings from the Boston University CTE Center have previously suggested that playing football might increase the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease.

Using data from a large online survey sponsored by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, researchers found that participants who had a history of playing organized tackle football were 61% more likely to report a Parkinson’s disease diagnosis or parkinsonism, an umbrella term for symptoms like tremors and rigidity that cause movement problems, compared with those who played other organized sports.

The report, published in the medical journal JAMA Network Open, also found that participants who played football at higher levels — professionally or in college — were nearly three times as likely to have Parkinson’s or parkinsonism compared with those who played at the youth or high school levels.

Favre was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016.

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