Sportscaster Dan Patrick Explains His Memory Loss

He's undergoing chemo for a painful joint condition called polymyalgia rheumatica
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted May 3, 2019 12:54 PM CDT
Sportscaster Dan Patrick Explains His Memory Loss
A 2006 photo of Dan Patrick, when he was still with ESPN.   (AP Photo/ESPN, Rich Arden)

Renowned sportscaster Dan Patrick couldn't remember the name of baseball player Albert Pujols on the air recently, and it wasn't his first such slip-up. The 62-year-old figures listeners might be wondering what's going on, and on Thursday he explained all on his radio show, reports Yahoo Sports. For the last seven years, Patrick has been suffering from a debilitating joint condition called polymyalgia rheumatica. He began taking Prednisone, which he describes as "wonderful" because it wiped out the intense pain but "horrible" because of side effects including depression and suicidal thoughts. Several months ago, he switched to a "light chemo" treatment, which he is still undergoing. But that, too, has side effects.

"Brain fog is what I have," says Patrick, per Fox News. "I went to the store to buy one thing. I walked around for a half hour. I was going for salad dressing, and I came home with olives.” He also mentioned going out to dinner with his daughter, then calling her the next day because he had no memory of it. Patrick says he has five more monthly treatments to go, and he thanked his staff and his listeners for patience while he finishes them up. "I've been holding a secret," he says, but no more. (More Dan Patrick stories.)

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