What Were Eric Dane’s Symptoms Before ALS Diagnosis and Death at Age 53? Everything He Said

Eric Dane was diagnosed with ALS nearly one year before he died in February 2026 at the age of 53.

“I’ve always had a sense of humor about this,” Dane said in a Famous Last Words interview, which aired posthumously on Netflix. “It’s really kind of interesting what’s happening to my body. The mechanics of this disease is pretty interesting to me. It’s when you zoom in and look at how it affects the individual moments is when it can actually bring you down a little bit.”

Dane publicly revealed his diagnosis in April 2025, confirming that he had ALS, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. (ALS is a nervous system disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord and has no cure.)

“My spirit has been surprisingly pretty buoyant through this journey,” he said in Famous Last Words. “I have no idea, there’s no reason for me to be happy in any individual moment, but I am. The progression of this thing is really just remarkable. You know, I’m pretty sure I sound pretty good too, but to me, I feel like I sound like a frog.”

Dane, who is survived by his two daughters with Rebecca Gayheart, had previously been candid about his diagnosis and his symptoms. Keep scrolling for more:

It Took Eric Dane 9 Months to Receive a Diagnosis

Eric Dane detailed his early symptoms during a June 2025 appearance on Good Morning America.

“I didn’t really think anything of it at the time; I thought maybe I’d been texting too much and my hand was fatigued,” he said. “A few weeks later, I noticed it’d gotten a little worse. 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.’”

While waiting on answers, Dane discovered that his left hand also stopped functioning.

“I have one functioning arm. … My left side is functioning. My right side, [which is my dominant side], has completely stopped working,” he said. “[My left arm] is going. I feel like maybe a couple, a few more months and I won’t have my left. … I’m worried about my legs.”

Eric Dane Lost Control of His Body 

After Eric Dane’s ALS diagnosis, he took daughter Georgia on a boating trip. (Dane shared Georgia and her older sister, Billie, with Rebecca Gayheart.)

“When I jumped into the ocean that day and realized I couldn’t swim and generate enough power to get myself back to the boat,” he told Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America. “I thought, ‘Oh God.’ And I realized in that moment I’m not safe in the water anymore. [My daughter] dragged me back to the boat. I was breaking down in tears.”

He continued, “I made sure she got back in the water with her friend and continued on with the snorkeling with the guide. But I was just heartbroken.”

Finding Hope Through Medicine

Eric Dane revealed on Good Morning America in 2025 that Dr. Merit Cudkowicz gave him renewed hope amid his incurable disease.

“That’s what I got from Merit when I met her, was that there was a sense of hope,” he said. “I didn’t get that from other doctors that I met with.”

Dane had been taking medication and participated in a research study, jokingly adding, “I will fly to Germany and eat the head off a rattlesnake if you told me that that would help.”

Eric Dane Remained Hopeful No Matter What

“This disease is slowly taking my body, but it will never take my spirit,” Eric Dane stressed in Famous Last Words, which aired after his death. “[Resiliency is] my superpower. You knock me down, I bounce right up, and I keep coming back. I get up again and again and again.”

He concluded, “I hope I’ve demonstrated that you can face anything, you can face the end of your days [and] you can face hell with dignity.”