Michael J. Fox: Parkinson’s is ‘banging on the door’

Actor Michael J. Fox said in an interview that will air on Sunday that the Parkinson’s disease he was diagnosed with more than 30 years ago is becoming more of a challenge.

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In an interview with Jane Pauley on “CBS Mornings,” the “Back to the Future” and “Family Ties” actor, 61, reflected on Parkinson’s. He was diagnosed with early-onset of the disease when he was 29 in 1991 and conceded that “I’m not gonna be 80.”

“You’ve not squandered any of your capacity,” Pauley said. “But at some point, Parkinson’s gonna make the call for you, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it’s, it’s banging on the door. Yeah, I mean, I’m not gonna lie. It’s gettin’ hard, it’s gettin’ harder,” Fox said. “It’s gettin’ tougher. Every day it’s tougher. But, but, that’s, that’s the way it is. I mean, you know, who do I see about that?”

Fox added that he has had spinal surgery for a tumorous growth, which affected his ability to walk and caused him to fall, CBS News reported.

“(I) broke this arm, and I broke this arm, I broke this elbow,” Fox told Pauley. “I broke my face. I broke my hand.”

Fox was able to continue acting until 2020 and has dedicated his energy toward the Michael J. Fox Foundation For Parkinson’s Research, Deadline reported.

The foundation just announced a major breakthrough for detecting the disease with a biomarker before the onset of symptoms, according to Vanity Fair.

The foundation has raised more than $1 billion toward research projects Deadline reported.

Fox told Pauley that optimism is “sustainable,” but he was also being realistic. He has fallen several times because of the disease and said that falling “is a big killer,” along with pneumonia.

“You don’t die from Parkinson’s. You die with Parkinson’s,” Fox told Pauley. So I’ve been thinking about the mortality of it. I’m not gonna be 80. I’m not gonna be 80.

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Photos: Michael J. Fox through the years 1983: Michael J. Fox, actor in the television series "Family Ties," poses on Jan 10, 1983. (AP Photo/Wally Fong)

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