On August 3rd, 2015, former Detroit Lions running back Mel Farr, who was only 70, died suddenly after suffering a massive heart attack while in his home.
According to Pia Malbran of ESPN’s Outside The Lines, Farr had Stage 3 chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) at the time of his death. OTL says that following Farr’s death, his family donated both his spinal cord and brain to the Boston University School of Medicine for testing and the results show he did, in fact, have CTE.
VIDEO: Former @lions RB Mel Farr's daughter and son join @OTLonESPN to reveal their father had Stage 3 CTE https://t.co/1XGm4aKDb6
— Molly McEndy (@mollymita) January 30, 2017
“Mr. Farr had Stage 3 CTE, which is consistent with other football players of similar age and exposure,” said Dr. Ann McKee, the director of Boston University’s CTE Center. “At Stage 3, the disease is widespread, but most severe in the frontal lobes as well as the medial temporal lobes, specifically the hippocampus, which plays a critical role in forming new memories, and the amygdala, which governs emotion.
“Mr. Farr had symptoms consistent with other Stage 3 cases, including memory problems, significant personality change, and behavioral symptoms,” added Dr. McKee, who is also a professor of neurology and pathology at the Boston University School of Medicine and the Chief of Neuropathology for the VA Boston Healthcare System. “His family noted that Mr. Farr was aware of, and frustrated by, his decline.”
Said Farr’s daughter, Monet Bartell: “My dad for some time had been suffering. He was losing his memory. Things he should remember, he couldn’t remember.”
To read the rest of Malbran’s story for OTL, please click the link below.
Source: OTL: Former Detroit Lions RB Mel Farr had Stage 3 CTE when he died in 2015
