Following her long awaited return to “Grey’s Anatomy” as Dr. Addison Montgomery, Kate Walsh addressed her former costar Eric Dane’s ALS diagnosis in a recent interview.
Kate Walsh Says Eric Dane’s ALS Battle Is ‘Heartbreaking’
Disney“It’s so painful. It’s really sad,” Walsh, 58, told Variety in an interview published on Thursday, January 29. “I haven’t been in touch with him, but I’ve reached out and sent my love and support and strength. It’s so heartbreaking.”
The former “Private Practice” star continued, “He’s such a beautiful person and such an incredible man, and I’ve had other friends that have battled with this disease, and it’s just horrific. So my heart goes out to him. I keep him, his family, his girls, in my prayers.”
Many people have reached out to the “Feast” actor, 53, amid his health battle, including Patrick Dempsey, who also starred alongside him in “Grey’s Anatomy.”
“I spoke to him a few weeks ago. I’ve been texting with him,” Dempsey told Parade in an interview published on Wednesday, January 28. “We were trying to get him in [“Memory of a Killer”] but unfortunately, the progression of his disease made it virtually impossible. But I was happy to see that he was here in Toronto working on, I think, another medical drama.”
Eric Dane Revealed His Diagnosis in April 2025
GettyDane revealed he had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in April 2025.
“I have been diagnosed with ALS,” he told People at the time. “I am grateful to have my loving family by my side as we navigate this next chapter.”
Since then, the “Euphoria” star has opened up about his battle with the disease.
“I started experiencing some weakness in my right hand, and I really didn’t think anything of it,” Dane told “Good Morning America” on June 16, 2025. “At the time, I thought maybe I had been texting too much or my hand was fatigued.”
However, he said he noticed a few weeks later that “it had gotten a little worse.” After going to multiple hand specialists, he was eventually sent to a neurologist and learned he had ALS.
The disease is incurable and progressively kills the nerves that connect to the body’s muscles. It affects everything from movement and speech to breathing, and many become paralyzed while the mind is still functioning.
“I will never forget those three letters,” Dane explained to Diane Sawyer at the time. “It’s on me the second I wake up. It’s not a dream.”
