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KIND HEART: Taylor Swift DONATE $20,000,000 to Sympathized with Kansas City Superstar shares his battle against Parkinson’s and liver failure: ‘FELT LIKE DEATH’
Former NFL quarterback Bernie Kosar has revealed that he is battling multiple medical issues, including liver failure and Parkinson’s disease.
The 60-year-old, who played for the Cleveland Browns, opened up on his health battles, saying an ‘independent NFL doctor’ diagnosed him with Parkinson’s disease in February before he was placed on a liver transplant list in late spring.
He told Cleveland Magazine that his body ‘gave out’ during an appearance for the Browns at their December 28th matchup against the New York Jets.
‘I really felt like I wasn’t going to make it home from the Jets game,’ Kosar said. ‘I sucked it up, though, and continued to avoid the doctors until the new year. Then I went into the hospital and got a massive blood transfusion.
‘It was like: ‘How are you alive? How are you moving? Because your hemoglobin levels are so low.’
Kosar was informed by doctors in January that he likely needed a new liver before he fell ill again in February. One of his medics, Dr. Michael Roizen, chief wellness officer of Cleveland Clinic, said there is a 90 percent chance Kosar will need a transplant.
While attending the Super Bowl festivities in Las Vegas, the former signal caller’s condition worsened and he had to spend several days in hospital.
His health continued to deteriorate through March, with Kosar saying he ‘looked like death.
‘I wish you could have seen me three months ago,’ Kosar says. ‘Actually, maybe not, because I looked like death. I felt like death. E. Coli blood poisoning. Heart trouble. And I really thought I needed the liver transplant ASAP. I was in bad shape.’
But his doctor, Anthony Post, offered fans optimistic news as they said that the former Super Bowl winner has improved.
‘Liver disease does tend to fluctuate,’ says Post. ‘So he’s on that wave thing where it goes up and down. He’s in a good phase right now, but anything bad could happen.’
Kosar admitted that he had suffered with liver-related illnesses for years but with no clear source of the problems, he brushed them off.
Throughout his NFL career, Kosar says he suffered 80, broken bones, 40 surgeries, numerous seizures and countless concussions.
Kosar was drafted by the Browns with the first overall pick in the 1985 supplemental draft after he starred for the University of Miami.
He went on to lead Cleveland to three AFC championship game appearances before he was cut by then-Browns coach Bill Belichick.
Kosar moved to Dallas where he won a Super Bowl title as the backup quarterback on the 1993 Cowboys team.
He rounded off his career with a stint back in Miami with the Dolphins from 1994 to 1996 before finally hanging up his cleats. He passed for 23,301 yards and threw 124 touchdown passes throughout his career.