Updated

Updated · CBS New York · Oct 20

Christina Applegate Says 2021 MS Diagnosis Was Wrong After Doctor Reassessed B Cells

Updated

Updated · CBS New York · Oct 20

Christina Applegate Says 2021 MS Diagnosis Was Wrong After Doctor Reassessed B Cells

Q: After years of MS advocacy, what mysterious illness is actually causing Christina Applegate’s severe neurological symptoms?

It is not yet known. Applegate said new testing showed she was misdiagnosed and does not have multiple sclerosis, but doctors have not identified the illness actually causing her severe neurological symptoms. What is clear is that she remains seriously ill. On her “MeSsy” podcast, Applegate said she still has what she described as every symptom of MS, including major mobility problems, and that her condition has not improved despite the revised diagnosis. She told listeners she feels “back at square one,” confused and frightened because the label changed but the disability did not. The reporting and related medical context suggest only that physicians are now investigating other disorders that can mimic MS. Those can include conditions such as CADASIL, neuromyelitis optica, transverse myelitis, ADEM, infections and other inflammatory or neurological diseases. But no credible report in the material provided says Applegate has been diagnosed with any of those. So the direct answer is that the illness remains a mystery for now. Applegate’s doctors are still searching for the real cause of her symptoms, and she has not publicly named a replacement diagnosis.

3 articles · Updated · CBS New York · Oct 20

Christina Applegate, 54, said on Tuesday's two-part MeSsy podcast that doctors have concluded she never had multiple sclerosis, reversing the diagnosis she had lived with since 2021.
A doctor reopened the case after stopping her infusion treatment and monitoring her B cells, which did not change as expected, prompting a broader review of her condition.
Applegate said the reversal has not eased her health problems: she still has debilitating mobility symptoms, attends physical therapy three times a week, and expects a new medical investigation to begin next week.
Dr. Marwa Kaisey said on the podcast that nearly 1 in 5 people told they have MS may not actually have it, because the disease has no single definitive test and misdiagnosis is fairly common.
The finding leaves Applegate back at "square one" after years as a public MS advocate, now searching for the cause of symptoms that have affected her work and daily life.