An NRL legend has opened up about how he believes his career has left him with brain damage as his wife reveals the signs she knew something was wrong.
Former Brisbane Broncos star, Corey Parker, 42, believes he has Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), a progressive and fatal brain disease associated with repeated blows to the head.
While the sports commentator is yet to receive any scans or tests to confirm this, his wife and partner of 21 years, Margaux, says he struggles with thought processing and has ‘signs of forgetfulness’.
‘It’s like he is sleepwalking because he is not aware of what he is doing. At night, he will get up and not know where he is,’ she told the Courier Mail.
‘When he talks, it won’t always make sense to the conversation we’ve just had.’
NRL legend and sports commentator, Corey Parker, 42, has revealed that he might have CTE and that his wife wants him to get tested
The 16-year NRL veteran said he has become increasingly forgetful and that he will donate his brain to medical research when he dies
Mrs Parker, a Triple M radio presenter, said her husband’s condition is worse after he’s had a couple of drinks, adding it can lead him to have ‘blackout moments’.
If the couple stays at a hotel, Mrs Parker makes sure the door is locked so her husband doesn’t accidentally walk out of the room and get lost.
She’s encouraged Parker to receive treatment and have proper tests conducted.
Mrs Parker said she knows a doctor who told her they may be able to help Parker and his former teammate Wally Lewis.
Lewis, along with fellow players Mario Fenech and Ray Price, recently revealed they had been diagnosed with early onset dementia.
Parker has already offered to donate his brain to the the Australian Sports Brain Bank for medical research after he dies.
He said it would be ‘naive’ to think that after 16 years in the game he wouldn’t have some symptoms of CTE.
Mrs Parker said that her husband’s condition becomes worse when he drinks and that when they stay in hotels she has to lock the door so he doesn’t leave the room and get lost
Parker said that in the 400 senior-level matches he played during his career that he ‘absolutely’ did some damage to his brain
Despite his time in the NRL being ‘terrific’, Parker admitted that some of his collisions on the footy field ‘weren’t great’ and he now suffers memory loss.
He added that during his career he would fake injuries to other parts of his body if he suspected that he was concussed so he could buy more time to clear his head.
‘At the back end of my career, I would get buzzed in the head, but I would grab my shoulder or my leg and pretend something else was injured to conceal having a head knock,’ he told the publication.
Parker said while he didn’t think he was suffering any emotional issues from potentially having CTE, he held fears due to his grandparents both dying from dementia when they were in their 70s.
Parker said that he has not been tested or had any scans done to prove that he has brain damage but that he is open to doing so
By donating his brain Parker hopes to help future players avoid the damage he has endured, especially his own children who have recently begun playing sports themselves
Symptoms of CTE can include memory loss, depression, aggression and suicidal thoughts.
His old teammate Paul Green, 49, took his own life in 2022 after which doctors revealed that he had been suffering from CTE.
Steve Folkes was the first NRL player to be diagnosed with the condition, which is also common among American football players.
Parker said that he now only remembers ‘very small’ parts of his career, which is becoming a ‘blur’ and has since started sending himself texts and setting reminders for important things.
He is thankful harsher rules and regulations have been enforced for younger generations playing footy, including his own sons.
The father-of-four chalked up 347 games for the Broncos, as well 19 appearances for Australia and 13 Origins for Queensland in his decorated career.
He first opened up about his health battles in February on SEN radio.
‘I’ve got no doubt; I have no doubt whatsoever over my tenure as a rugby league player that I have symptoms, I have symptoms of CTE,’ he said.
‘But it’s something that you can’t really get a grasp on until obviously post-mortem.
‘You can’t expect to play a high-collision sport, [and] for [close to] 20 of those years at a high level, and not have some sort of side effects.
‘You can try and manage different things, but the damage is done, isn’t it?’
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