Demaryius Thomas Had Degenerative Brain Disease
Demaryius Thomas had the degenerative brain disease known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy or CTE, which is linked to repeated blows to the head, according to an announcement Tuesday by doctors from Boston University who had been studying the former NFL star's brain through the Concussion Legacy Foundation (CLF).
Thomas was found dead in his Roswell, Georgia, home this past Dec. 9, just 15 days before his 34th birthday. At the time, his family believed seizures, which Thomas had battled since a 2019 car crash, might have led to his death. The coroner's office in Fulton County, Georgia, has not yet ruled on the cause of death.
Neuropathologist Dr. Ann McKee, who was part of the Boston University research team, said Thomas most likely died after having a seizure -- a condition not generally associated with CTE.
"CTE itself does not cause death. You don't die from CTE," McKee told ABC News. "What CTE does is it changes your behavior and your personality."
Family members say that in addition to the seizures, which began in 2020, Thomas also struggled with what have come to be known as common conditions associated with CTE: memory loss, paranoia and other erratic behavior, especially in the last year before he died.