Bruce Willis, who is living with severe memory loss caused by a brain condition, remains unaware of his illness.
His 47-year-old wife, Emma Willis, made the revelation in a recent interview, sharing that the 70-year-old Die Hard actor does not recognise the effects of Frontotemporal dementia and believes everything is normal.
“He never connected the dots that he has this disease, and I’m really happy about that,” Radar Online quoted Emma. “I’m really happy he doesn’t know about it.”
Emma explained that this lack of awareness is due to a condition called Anosognosia, where the brain cannot understand its own illness.
The condition, extremely common in Alzheimer’s disease and other neurological disorders, is not dangerous on its own but the condition can cause patients to resist treatment, per Cleveland Clinic.
“People think this might be denial, like they don’t want to go to the doctor because they’re saying, ‘I’m fine, I’m fine,'” Emma told the magazine. “But it’s actually the anosognosia that comes into play. It’s not denial. Their brain is changing. This is part of the disease.”
More than two years after his frontotemporal dementia diagnosis, Bruce is still “very much present in his body,” Emma added.
She recently moved him into a care facility where he now receives full-time support from medical professionals.