EGN NEWS DESK
Wendy Williams, the previous daytime speak present host, has been recognized with frontotemporal dementia and aphasia, a dysfunction that makes it tough or unimaginable for an individual to specific or comprehend language, based on a press release from her representatives.
Ms. Williams, 59, who hosted “The Wendy Williams Show” on Fox for greater than a decade, was formally recognized final yr after “present process a battery of medical assessments,” based on a press release launched on Thursday.
The assessments present that Ms. Williams has main progressive aphasia, a sort of frontotemporal dementia, her representatives mentioned, including that she was receiving the required medical care.
“Over the previous few years, questions have been raised at occasions about Wendy’s means to course of info,” the assertion mentioned, “and plenty of have speculated about Wendy’s situation, significantly when she started to lose phrases, act erratically at occasions, and have issue understanding monetary transactions.”
The assertion was launched earlier than the premiere this Saturday of “Where Is Wendy Williams?” a Lifetime community two-part documentary about Ms. Williams.
The challenge stopped filming in April, when, based on the documentary, Ms. Williams entered a care middle the place she has been ever since, People journal reported on Wednesday. Ms. Williams’s son, Kevin Hunter Jr., says within the documentary that medical doctors have related her cognitive points to alcohol use, People reported. Ms. Williams’s household informed People {that a} court-appointed authorized guardian was the one one that had “unfettered” entry to her.
Ms. Williams’s sister, Wanda Finnie, informed People that her household didn’t know what middle Ms. Williams was in. They can not name her themselves, she mentioned, however Ms. Williams can name them.
In May 2020, Ms. Williams went on hiatus from her speak present due to fatigue attributable to the autoimmune dysfunction Graves’ illness, the present mentioned in a press release on the time. She hosted the subsequent season’s premiere in September 2020, however well being struggles prevented her from returning the subsequent season, and the present used visitor hosts earlier than it was canceled in 2022.
Her representatives mentioned that they have been offering an replace about Ms. Williams’s well being “not solely to advocate for understanding and compassion for Wendy, however to lift consciousness about aphasia and frontotemporal dementia and assist the 1000’s of others going through related circumstances.”
Frontotemporal dementia is the most typical sort of dementia for folks underneath 60. The household of the actor Bruce Willis introduced that he had frontotemporal dementia in February 2023.
Primary progressive aphasia is a sort of frontotemporal dementia that impacts folks’s means to talk and talk.
“It doesn’t actually seem to be a dementia the way in which folks sometimes take into consideration that phrase,” mentioned Dr. Sami Barmada, a neurologist at Michigan Medicine. With main progressive aphasia, folks might battle to seek out the suitable phrases.
“They might be speaking, after which hastily they’ll pause — you may see them making an attempt to get the phrases out,” Dr. Barmada mentioned.
Patients can also substitute phrases once they can’t discover them, saying one thing like “thingy” as a substitute of “distant management.” In some instances, sufferers can also have a tough time following conversations, significantly in teams, and understanding what individuals are saying round them. The situation progresses slowly over time, and there are few remedy choices.
The assertion from Ms. Williams’s representatives mentioned that she was “nonetheless in a position to do many issues for herself.”
“Most importantly, she maintains her trademark humorousness and is receiving the care she requires to ensure she is protected and that her wants are addressed,” the assertion mentioned. “She is appreciative of the various type ideas and good needs being despatched her means.”
