Paul Sinha: The Chase star reveals Parkinson's diagnosis 'I'll fight it with every breath'

The Chase star Paul Sinha, 49, said he received the diagnosis on May 30th. He called the news “devastating” and revealed the diagnosis had been made following a series of health issues. “On the evening of Thursday May 30th, an experienced consultant neurologist calmly informed me that I had Parkinson’s disease,” he wrote on his blog. “It was a devastating denouement to a medical odyssey that began in September 2017 with a sudden-onset, frozen right shoulder, and took in an unexpected diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes, a lifestyle transformation that enabled me to lose two stone, and a shoulder operation in January this year.” The Chaser said his reaction wasn’t “one of shock”.

He explained how he had been forced to cancel appearances at the Edinburgh Fringe and the World Quizzing Championships due to medical appointments.

He said he had spent last month in New Zealand “simultaneously having the comedy month of my life, and worrying about why a right-sided limp was now getting worse”.

In the frank post, he told fans: “Behind the facade of the cheerful, late night comedy festival drunk was a man deeply scared about facing the truth when back in the UK.

“It has been a really, really tough two weeks.

“Cancelling my run at the Edinburgh Fringe, missing the World Quizzing Championships to have brain scans, performing club sets whilst emotionally bewildered, and of course working my way through my loved ones, delivering the bad news.”

Paul said he had a treatment plan in place and now feels “far more prepared for the new challenges ahead”.

He went on to praise his family, including his fiancé, friends and colleagues.

“I don’t consider myself unlucky,” he wrote. “And whatever the next stage of my life holds for me, many others have it far worse.”

He told fans he “fully intends” to keep working on The Chase, writing and performing comedy.

“Dancing On Ice is, I suspect, out of the question,” he quipped lightheartedly.

“A lot of people have asked, ‘What can I do to help?’ The answer is to treat me exactly the same as before,” he concluded.

Paul shared a link to his blog post on Twitter, telling his 108,000 followers: “I have Parkinson’s disease. I will fight this with every breath I have.”

The quizzer is best known for his role on The Chase, on which he has the nickname The Sinnerman.

At the beginning of the year, Paul Sinha announced he was engaged after asking his boyfriend to marry him.

“I proposed today,” he tweeted on January 3. “He said yes. Thus starts yet another diet.”

In addition to appearing on The Chase, Paul is also a stand-up comedian and a trained doctor.

source: express.co.uk