diagnosis

Marshall Faulk is an extraordinarily active 53-year-old. The first-ballot NFL Hall of Fame running back is the head football coach at Southern University in Baton Rouge, La. He runs a foundation in his name that assists underprivileged youth. He works out. He plays a lot of golf.

And he has Parkinson’s disease.

Faulk revealed his diagnosis on The Caring Neurologist podcast this week, saying he noticed Parkinson’s symptoms on the golf course.

“The rigidity in my hand, just sometimes after I play a lot or I practice a lot,” he said. “I just thought it was normal nerves when putting and stuff like that. But it started to be times where I was playing, but I wasn’t in a match, and it would still do that. I was like, ‘Wow, is that normal?’”

Faulk said he was diagnosed about 18 months ago. An unfailing optimist in his social media dispatches and a fiery truth-teller when addressing his team, the former Rams Super Bowl champion described himself on the podcast as “one of the lucky ones” because he caught the disease early.

“The doctor was like, ‘You need to go get checked,’” he said. “You need to go have X, Y and Z done. You’re at an age, it’s possible; it’s likely that it’s not, but you need to go get checked.’”

He jumped on the phone to speak with other former NFL players who share the diagnosis.

“They told me about some of the symptoms and things they had that they thought [were] just football-related, that it didn’t relate to Parkinson’s in any manner,” Faulk said. “They wish, in those early stages, if they had maybe just known a little earlier, they would be in better shape.”

Former Green Bay Packers greats Brett Favre and Ahman Green currently live with Parkinson’s. So does former quarterback Bernie Kosar.

St. Louis Rams’ Marshall Faulk, left, straight-arms Lofa Tatupu of the Seattle Seahawks during a 2005 NFL game.

(Elaine Thompson / Associated Press)

Perhaps the most noteworthy sports figure to battle Parkinson’s was boxing great Muhammad Ali, who died in 2016. Faulk met Ali at a dinner and said on the podcast that he is comforted by the memory.

“He leaned over to me and he whispered, ‘You a bad boy,’” Faulk said. “And then he made a couple other comments. I was like, ‘He’s all there.’ So knowing that, I didn’t look at it like life is going to end.”

Faulk was seemingly indestructible as a player. An All-American at San Diego State, he was drafted second overall by the Indianapolis Colts in 1994 and immediately made an impact, rushing for more than 1,000 yards for the first of seven times and being named NFL rookie of the year.

Faulk was traded to the then St. Louis Rams ahead of the 1999 season and led their “Greatest Show on Turf” offense to a Super Bowl XXXIV victory in January 2000. The following season, Faulk was named NFL MVP. He transitioned to the NFL Network broadcast booth after retiring in 2005 having rushed for 12,279 yards and 100 touchdowns while also catching 767 passes for another 36 touchdowns.

He got into coaching in 2025, joining Deion Sanders’ staff at Colorado. When the opportunity arose to become the head coach at Southern, Faulk didn’t hesitate even though he already had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s.

“I could have stayed at Colorado. I was comfortable. But I’ve never done well in life when comfortable,” he said at his introductory news conference at Southern. “And I’m not gonna lie to you. This is uncomfortable, and I like it.”

The Jaguars, an HBCU school competing in the FCS, are 3-4 in Faulk’s first season after going 2-10 in 2025. Faulk’s messages to his players go beyond football. On Thursday he posted this on Instagram: “Protecting your game goes far beyond avoiding injury.⁠ Protect your body.⁠ Protect your mind.⁠ Protect your circle.⁠ Protect your future.

“The decisions you make away from the field can have just as much impact on your future as what happens between the lines,” he continued. “Choose the people, habits, and environments that move you closer to where you want to go.⁠ Send this to a young athlete who needs this reminder today.⁠”

Helping others is why he decided to open up about his Parkinson’s diagnosis, he told host Dr. Sandeep Thakkar on the podcast.

“I want to help as many people as I can,” he said. “What you want to do with that information is pass it on to the next generation to make sure that they have it better, that they know more. And you’re doing it to leave this world a better place than it was when I got here.”

It is unclear when Billy Joel will perform again.

The 77-year-old singer has to take “a series of tests” before being able to tour again, he told the Hollywood Reporter in a health update following his 2025 brain disorder diagnosis.

“I’m not allowed to drive,” Joel said in the interview published Thursday. “And I can’t do performances because what the neurologist told me, every time you do a show, it’s like you’re getting a concussion.”

Joel canceled concerts in May 2025 after revealing two months before that he had a brain disorder known as normal pressure hydrocephalus, or NPH, which causes physical and mental issues.

“This condition has been exacerbated by recent concert performances, leading to problems with hearing, vision and balance,” Joel said in a statement on his Instagram in May 2025. “Under his doctor’s instructions, Billy is undergoing specific physical therapy and has been advised to refrain from performing during this recovery period.”

NPH is a brain disorder in which excess cerebrospinal fluid accumulates in the brain’s ventricles, according to the Alzheimer’s Assn. It can cause cognitive issues, difficulty walking and the loss of bladder control. Those suffering with NPH often walk with a wide stance and their bodies bent forward as if they were trying to maintain balance on a boat — a feeling that Joel described while on Bill Maher’s podcast “Club Random” on July 21, 2025.

Other symptoms include mild dementia that involves short-term memory loss, a lack of interest in daily activities and difficulty completing routine tasks.

NPH is one of the few causes of dementia that can be controlled or reversed with surgical treatment, usually involving the placement of a shunt.

It is unclear whether Joel underwent the procedure, although the “Uptown Girl” singer initially postponed his concerts in March 2025 after undergoing unspecified surgery and physical therapy.

The surgery took place just weeks after the crooner lost his balance on Feb. 22, 2025, while performing “It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me” at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.; however, it is unclear if the tumble and subsequent surgery were at all related to the NPH diagnosis he revealed to the public that May.

For now, Joel reports that he is “OK” and the diagnosis is “not that serious,” per his THR interview. Neurologists have warned the singer, however, about the risks involved in performing, including that the lighting and sound can cause stress in the body.

“And [neurologists] said, ‘Well, you really shouldn’t be doing that right now.’ So they have to test me further to see if I can go back and do performing again, which I would like to be able to do,” he said.

Times staff writer Alexandra Del Rosario and former assistant editor Christie D’Zurilla contributed to this report.

His predecessor, Francis, once wrote that he had started his papacy thinking he might only have a few years in the role, having already suffered health complications throughout his life.

As such, it was clear that he was intent on making waves quickly and implementing what some saw as fairly radical change in the Church at a swift pace.

While Pope Leo’s papacy has undoubtedly started in what appears to be a comparatively measured way, he has still grown quickly into being a powerful, uncompromising and compassionate moral voice on the world stage.

His messaging in opposition to war, in support of the dignity of migrants and on the dangers of AI in particular has stood out in its clarity.

To some extent, he has already done what many Catholics had feared was barely possible, in starting to bring closer together different factions of a Church that had seemed somewhat divided.

Noticeably, both progressive and traditionalist followers often talking of him as a voice that reflects their own.

But even after successful surgery, and with no details yet about what happens now, speculation has already begun as to whether a cancer diagnosis will mean an evident shift in Pope Leo’s pace in implementing changes he sees as necessary.

On the other hand any dramatic moves, such as on doctrine, would certainly feel out of character for a Pope who for nearly a year and a half has shown himself to be measured, thoughtful and discerning, as well as having a focus on stability.

Pride of Britain host Carol Vorderman says her recent health crisis has given her a new perspective, forcing her to focus on what truly matters.

After a year-long health crisis, and as she marks 44 years on television, Carol Vorderman wants to “deep cleanse” her life and focus on what matters. The 65-year-old Pride of Britain presenter and former Countdown star was completely floored for most of last year, with a sudden debilitating case of rheumatoid arthritis.

She couldn’t walk without crying in pain and found the experience depressing and a shock to the system. Carol says: “As you get older, health becomes one of your top priorities. And time – who you spend that time with, and what you spend that time on. Time becomes your currency, so you don’t want to waste it.

“Every single person I know of my age group, we’re all trying to get rid of stuff. You spend all your life accumulating, but you don’t want to waste time curating things you’ve accumulated. It’s a deep cleanse for old age. Being really poorly and on a lot of medication for so much time really has given me a new perspective.

“You become much more conscious of your overall health. Your priority list changes. It was a big shock to the system, and that’s why I have every sympathy for people with chronic pain. I just don’t know how they live with it. It’s just depressing.”

Carol is due to present The Daily Mirror Pride of Britain Awards, in partnership with P&O Cruises, for the 27th year – a show she has recently co-hosted with Diversity star Ashley Banjo.

The event, shown on ITV and ITVX, celebrates the nation’s unsung heroes and includes awards for Child of Courage, Outstanding Bravery, Lifetime and Young Fundraiser.

Carol says: “The first Pride of Britain was 1999, so it only occurred to me this week that I was on Countdown for 26 years, but now Pride of Britain is my long runner. On November 2, I celebrate 44 years on TV. I’m not having a party, but I am getting a BAFTA Cymru for Outstanding Achievement. In other words, still being alive!

“The reason I keep doing Pride of Britain is because it’s the best job. It’s very glam. There are lots of very glam shows, but it’s very real. I do get emotional about the show about a week before. I remember the people who have won awards and have either passed away through old age or particularly the youngsters who died. They came on because they had cancer and raised money, or whatever their story might have been, and they’re no longer with us.

“Then you also remember the people who were doing these great things 15 years ago are still doing them. I always come back to how many great people there are. The show makes you want to be better and it’s made me more of a fighter.”

Carol recalls how she had to fight when her health nosedived. She says: “I had travel vaccines for a trip to Thailand and within three days I had chronic rheumatoid arthritis. I can’t prove that they caused it. My hands doubled in size. I couldn’t walk. I literally couldn’t move anything without crying in pain.

“I was on steroids probably for about eight months, and now I’m on other medication for the rest of my life. That’s hard because I’ve always prided myself on being healthy. It was as much as I could do to look out of the window and think, ‘I hope one day I’ll be able to walk without pain again.’

“The big thing for a lot of older people is community. You’ve got to feel a part of something. I know that my mum living with us and being around the kids, living in a busy house, gave her a purpose.

“If she’d just been living by herself somewhere, she wouldn’t have lasted. And smartphones don’t help. I love keeping up to date with what people are doing on Instagram, but it’s not the same as getting people together.”

Carol also reveals that laughter is extremely important to her wellbeing. “People who laugh are very special,” she says. “I love laughing. I love laughing at myself. Most of my friends just completely take the p*** out of me all the time.

“As you get older, you realise that even people who make you laugh and want to share, there’s a kindness in it. So for me, there are people who are heroes, because they make you feel better, they make you laugh, rather than taking offence, and I think there’s something quite heroic in that. There’s something about laughter that just breaks down the barriers.”

Carol has also long been a passionate, unfiltered voice of public frustration, turning to political advocacy to expose what she calls “political corruption”. She says: “Good people also need support so that they can do even more good things. Some people have been through so much pain and grief, some of it caused by certain politicians.

“Those things make me very angry, and I suppose now I’m at an age where I no longer need to build a career. A lot of girls say to me, ‘I believe in everything that you do, Carol, but I wish I could say the things you do. I just don’t feel strong enough.’ I say, ‘Yeah, but you’re not in a position to. I am in a position to say it, so I feel that responsibility.’”

Despite the emotional weight of Pride of Britain, Carol says there is always lightness on the show. She recalls: “The one that I always remember was in 2012 when we had lots of people on the stage, because we were celebrating the London Olympics. To present the award was Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, as they were then.

“Then in my ear, the show’s boss said, ‘You’ve got to make Charles do the Mobot. Do it.’ So I talked about the wonderful Mo Farah and said, ‘Obviously sir, you will have seen this, shall we all do the Mobot?’ I collared him into it, he couldn’t stand there and say no. So he did it, what a good sport. The next day officials at Clarence House brought up that they hadn’t approved the Mobot ‘incident’ and asked who was responsible.”

For Carol, Pride of Britain is a chance to take a moment and appreciate good people. She says: “Pride of Britain gives us all an opportunity to take a breath for a couple of hours and witness these very real people who are doing very real things because they are brave, they’re determined. It’s a whole balance of life.”

*The Pride of Britain Awards will take place on 19th October, before airing on ITV and ITVX from 22nd October. Find out more about the Pride of Britain Awards 2026 HERE