All articles tagged with #anosognosia
Emma Heming Willis reveals that Bruce Willis, 70, doesn’t know he has frontotemporal dementia due to anosognosia, following his 2022 aphasia diagnosis and retirement. The disease more often affects behavior and language than memory; Willis still recognizes his wife and their two daughters, but now requires around-the-clock care and lives separately as the couple adapts to his changing needs.
Emma Heming Willis says Bruce Willis is living with frontotemporal dementia and, due to anosognosia, is unaware of his diagnosis; she notes his retirement in 2022 for aphasia, FTD confirmation a year later, and a slow progression, with him still able to connect with family at times. There is no cure for FTD and life expectancy after onset is typically 7 to 13 years; the couple’s blended family has progressed with him as the disease advances.
Bruce Willis has been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia in 2023. His wife, Emma Heming Willis, says he does not understand the diagnosis due to anosognosia, yet he remains able to recognize family members and is still present with them, with the couple adapting communication as his language declines.
Bruce Willis is reportedly unaware of his frontotemporal dementia diagnosis due to anosognosia, per wife Emma Heming Willis, who says he remains present with and can recognize family members, though his language and communication are affected as the condition has evolved from aphasia to FTD.
Researchers have identified specific brain network connections associated with anosognosia, a condition where patients are unaware of their neurological or psychiatric deficits. Using a technique called lesion network mapping, they identified separate networks linked to visual and motor anosognosia and a shared network responsible for awareness of these deficits. The shared network converged on the hippocampus and precuneus, both associated with memory. This is the first systematic analysis to highlight the role of the hippocampus in visual anosognosia.