Patrick Stewart Privately Faced a ‘Brief Journey’ with Alzheimer’s Disease and Lewy Body Dementia Before His Death
Patrick Stewart Privately Faced a ‘Brief Journey’ with Alzheimer’s Disease and Lewy Body Dementia Before His Death
Cara Lynn ShultzThu, October 29, 2026 at 8:57 PM UTC
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Sir Patrick StewartCredit: Michael Buckner/Deadline/Penske Media via Getty -
Patrick Stewart’s representative said the Star Trek and X-Men actor died Oct. 28 at his Los Angeles home
The actor had not publicly shared his Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia diagnoses before his death
His final role will reprise Professor X in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday
Sir Patrick Stewart died at age 86, his representative told PEOPLE in an Oct. 29 statement, sharing that the actor had died the day before at his Los Angeles home.
The Star Trek and X-Men star, whose final role will be reprising his iconic role as Professor X in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday, had privately been struggling through a “a brief and poignant journey with Alzheimer’s Disease and Lewy Body Dementia,” his rep said. It’s a diagnosis Stewart had not shared publicly.
Although Lewy body dementia (LBD) and Alzheimer’s disease share symptoms, they’re both different forms of dementia and can occur in the same person at the same time. When this happens, it’s called mixed dementia, per the Alzheimer’s Association.
Sir Patrick Stewart as Professor X in ‘X-Men’Credit: 20th Century Fox Film Corp. / Courtesy Everett
The biggest difference between the two diagnoses is in the proteins that accumulate abnormally in the brain: Alzheimer’s disease is primarily associated with the buildup of amyloid-beta plaques and tau tangles, which damage brain cells and interfere with memory and thinking. Lewy body dementia is primarily associated with abnormal deposits of a protein called alpha-synuclein. These deposits, known as Lewy bodies and named after the scientist who discovered them, disrupt brain function and can affect thinking, movement, sleep and behavior.
Although treatments are being developed to halt the progression of symptoms and diagnose dementia earlier, there is no cure.
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Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause of dementia, the Alzheimer’s Association says, with 7.4 million Americans living with the progressive disease.
Lewy body dementia is the second-most common form of dementia after Alzheimer’s disease. However, unlike most well-known forms of dementia, memory loss isn’t the most prominent symptom of LBD. People with LBD may have visual hallucinations, problems with movement that mimic the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, depression and cognitive issues, according to the Mayo Clinic.
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Both are devastating diseases: As Faith Hill told PEOPLE when her father died from LBD, “It was difficult to watch a man you know be someone that you don’t recognize.” Shark Tank star Barbara Corcoran described Alzheimer’s to PEOPLE as “grieving in slow motion,” after watching her mother struggle with the disease.
In the statement shared from his rep, it stated that Stewart “has been held in the warm embrace of family and friends, surrounded by live music, prayer, tears, laughter, and the kind of profound emotion that only he could inspire after a lifetime of devotion to us all. We will forever cherish the peaceful ease and reflection on his face, an enduring reminder of his invincible grace.”
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
