Health
‘Miracle on the Hudson’ hero Captain ‘Sully’ Sullenberger reveals Alzheimer’s diagnosis
America 250: Chesley ‘Sully’ Sullenberger
Chesley ‘Sully’ Sullenberger is a former U.S. Air Force officer and commercial airline pilot. A graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, he served as a fighter pilot, flight leader, and training officer. After leaving active duty in 1980, he became an airline pilot with Pacific Southwest Airlines, later part of US Airways. On January 15, 2009, Sullenberger safely landed US Airways Flight 1549 on the Hudson River after a bird strike caused both engines to lose thrust. All 155 people on board survived, in what became known as the ‘Miracle on the Hudson.’ In 2021, he was nominated by President Joe Biden to serve as U.S. ambassador to the International Civil Aviation Organization, a role he held until 2022.
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One of the nation’s most famous aviators and great heroes has announced a heartbreaking diagnosis.
Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger III, the pilot who saved 155 people after making an emergency landing in New York’s Hudson River in what became known as “The Miracle on the Hudson,” shared in a public statement that he was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
“It is early stage,” he revealed. “For now, this means a name may not come easily to me, I forget a story I have recently told, or I don’t sleep as well, but I am in the beginning of this long journey.”
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Sullenberger, 75, shared with People magazine that he’s had trouble recalling details within the last year, despite having a photographic memory. He received his official diagnosis in August 2025.
U.S. Airways Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger III prepares to testify before the House Judiciary Committee’s Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee on Capitol Hill in December 2009. He was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. (Chip Somodevilla/Reuters)
The pilot became a celebrity when he carried out the emergency landing of US Airways Flight 1549 on Jan. 15, 2009, after colliding with a flock of geese that resulted in engine failure. Everyone onboard survived.
Alzheimer’s, the most common type of dementia, impacts more than seven million people in the U.S. over the age of 65, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.
“It is the unwanted visitor at the door.”
“My doctor, Dr. Gil Rabinovici with UCSF Medical Center, has opened my eyes to the prevalence of Alzheimer’s,” Sullenberger said in his statement. “This disease, he has told me, spares no age group and impacts millions of people around the world. It is the unwanted visitor at the door.”
Sullenberger’s wife, Lorrie, shared with People that the diagnosis has not dimmed his strong demeanor.
Capt. Chesley ‘Sully’ Sullenberger is pictured with wife Lorrie Sullenberger in 2018. She said the diagnosis has not dimmed his strong demeanor. (Dave Kotinsky/FilmMagic)
“Just as he was the same steady person before and after Flight 1549, he is the same steady person now, before and after this diagnosis,” she said. “That strength and steadiness is guiding us as a family.”
“We’re supporting him on this journey that we now walk with so many other families. Though the future is uncertain, we continue to live our lives, have hope and find joy in the everyday.”
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Flight 1549 first officer Capt. Jeff Skiles also commented on the news of his friend’s diagnosis.
“Sully is larger than life, even to me,” Skiles told People. “He’s somebody I’ve always looked up to, and I think a lot of other people do, too. Hopefully, it’s going to progress slowly and he’s going to be able to create the kind of life going forward that he would be proud of.”
Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger attends the “Sully” New York premiere at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, in New York City on Sept. 6, 2016. (Jim Spellman/WireImage)
Fox News senior medical analyst Dr. Marc Siegel noted that Sullenberger had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after the Miracle on the Hudson, which could have increased his risk.
“Age 75 is relatively late-onset,” he told Fox News Digital. “PTSD doubles the risk of developing Alzheimer’s because of changing brain chemistry and structure and sleep disruption.”
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Sullenberger reflected on how he has been a staunch advocate for travel safety, often addressing roadblocks in the aviation industry, fighting for increased pilot training and care.
Now, Capt. Sully, a former U.S. Air Force fighter pilot, plans to continue serving the public by focusing on raising Alzheimer’s awareness.
Alzheimer’s is a progressive disease, meaning the symptoms gradually worsen over time. (iStock)
“This new phase of my life has challenged what it means to be of service,” he said. “And the answer is to speak up. It is my hope that by sharing this, other families living in the shadows with this disease will feel they, too, can step forward.”
“So many people told us after Flight 1549, that the outcome gave them hope,” he went on. “Lorrie, my incredible partner of 37 years, says we can all use a little of that hope right now.”
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Though the soon-to-be National Aviation Hall of Fame inductee’s memory of the past may be impacted, Sullenberger said his diagnosis “will not prevent me from looking forward to and appreciating our future. I will navigate this chapter with my wonderful family by my side.”
Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger III testifies before the House Judiciary Committee’s Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. He represented the U.S. Airline Pilots Association and spoke about airline bankruptcy and employee vulnerability. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
“Over the years, when people would ask about the successful outcome of Flight 1549, I would say that ‘courage can be contagious,’ and on that day it helped everyone band together to get everyone off that airplane successfully,” he said.
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“Now we need that courage to battle this disease. I am now part of a larger community with many of you, and we will be courageous together.”
What to know about Alzheimer’s
Alzheimer’s disease is a type of dementia affecting memory, thinking and behavior, as described by the Alzheimer’s Association. It accounts for 60% to 80% of all dementia cases.
It is a progressive disease, meaning the symptoms gradually worsen over time. The memory loss is usually mild in early stages, but late-stage Alzheimer’s can include loss of ability to carry a conversation and respond to environmental factors.
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While there is no cure for Alzheimer’s, there are treatments that can help slow symptoms. Newer, more effective therapies are on the horizon, experts say.
Certain lifestyle changes, including mental and physical activity, have been shown to help prevent the disease.
Dr. Daniel Amen, a psychiatrist, brain imaging doctor and founder of Amen Clinics in California, previously spoke with Fox News Digital about Alzheimer’s risk and management.
“Alzheimer’s starts in your brain decades before you have any symptoms,” he said. “So, a 59-year-old woman I diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease likely had negative changes in her brain in her 20s.”
“It’s really never too early to think about protecting your brain and your mind.”
“I will navigate this chapter with my wonderful family by my side.”
Amen listed 11 major protective factors that can help ward off Alzheimer’s. These include promoting blood flow, reducing inflammation, and avoiding toxins like alcohol and drugs. Improving mental health, boosting immunity, getting adequate sleep and keeping diet and weight in check can also help reduce risk.
The doctor also recommends staying informed of hereditary diseases, maintaining a healthy hormonal balance and keeping the brain active in retirement.
Sullenberger’s 2009 bestselling autobiography, “Highest Duty: My Search for What Really Matters,” co-written with Jeffrey Zaslow, was adapted into a 2016 film, “Sully,” directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Tom Hanks.
Health
Bride cautions others before wedding day about risky beauty treatments: ‘Pain wasn’t worth it’
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A bride-to-be who wanted to look “like a princess” on her wedding day ended up looking far worse than that after a severe allergic reaction to a fake eyelash treatment.
Polly Bibby, 26, an illustrator, decided to try classic eyelash extensions ahead of her big day compared to her usual minimal makeup look.
She had a patch test done, she said, according to Kennedy News & Media — and since she suffered no reaction, she went ahead with the procedure in early July, before her wedding day.
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After getting the treatment done — which cost her about $88, she said — she was initially happy with her “dressier” appearance.
Just a few hours after the appointment, however, her eyes became watery and sore. She shrugged it off as symptoms of hay fever.
Polly Bibby, pictured, was left with red, raw and swollen eyes after suffering an allergic reaction to eyelash extensions. (Kennedy News & Media)
But when her eyes started to sting and then stick together due to a yellow discharge, alarm bells began going off. She called an urgent care medical line and was advised to head to the nearest hospital emergency room.
A shocking photo shows her red, raw and swollen eyes. After being seen by a nurse in the eye unit at Hinchingbrooke Hospital in Hinchingbrooke, Cambridge, it was confirmed she’d suffered an allergic reaction to the eyelash extensions.
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She was given a course of antibiotics and antihistamines, and told to wait three days for the swelling to go down before getting the false lashes removed.
“To keep the eyes safe, [artificial] lashes should be applied by an experienced aesthetician in a sanitary setting, with chemicals that are safe for your skin,” said Rebecca J. Taylor, M.D., a board-certified ophthalmologist in Nashville, in a statement on the American Academy of Ophthalmology website.
“The procedure does come with risks, namely trauma to or infection of the eyelid or cornea; allergic reaction to the glue; and permanent or temporary loss of eyelashes.”
Many brides opt for special beauty treatments for their wedding day. But one suffered a severe allergic reaction to an eyelash extension procedure. (iStock)
Infection can also result, Taylor said, from inadequate hygiene in the salon or damage to the eye during application.
Even though her skin is now slowly healing, Bibby of Cambridgeshire, in the United Kingdom, feared her eyes would still be red by the time she said “I do” to her to 29-year-old fiancé, Benjamin May.
She said she’s been sharing her experience to warn other brides about getting certain treatments so close to their big day.
“I just didn’t look like myself.”
“I don’t wear that much makeup,” she told Kennedy News & Media. “Getting married is the biggest day of your life, so I just wanted to test out different makeup and actually feel like a princess for the day.”
She said it was a trial for her wedding, as she’d “never had my eyelashes done before.”
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About four or five hours after the appointment, her partner looked at her eyes, she said, and thought they were a little red.
“By that evening, they had gone red, raw and were stinging. The only way I can describe [how I looked] is the man from ‘The Goonies’ with the big puffy eyes called Sloth. I just didn’t look like myself. I looked like a different person.”
Bibby, shown here in both images, was given a course of antibiotics and antihistamines and told to wait three days for the swelling to go down before having her false lashes removed. (Kennedy News & Media)
She said her eyes were “burning,” and “it got to the point where I was losing my vision and I couldn’t see at all.”
Every time she blinked, she said, her “eyes were sticking together as I had discharge building up [in] my eyes … a sticky yellow discharge pretty similar to when babies have conjunctivitis.”
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She said the medical staff who treated her were “quite taken back and shocked by it.”
During the removal of the false lashes, she said it felt like “acid was being poured onto her face.”
“I didn’t realize it would happen to me.”
She said, “I was screaming, crying and tensing up. My eyes are still red, scabby and very ‘rashy.’ The eyelids themselves are really swollen, and I’ve still got quite blurry vision.”
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She also said, “When people joke around and say things [can] go wrong [on your wedding day] — I didn’t realize it would happen to me.”
“I won’t be getting eyelash extensions for the big day,” said Bibby (not pictured) ahead of her big day, after suffering an allergic reaction. (iStock)
Ahead of her wedding, she said, “I won’t be getting eyelash extensions for the big day. Going through that pain was not worth it. If I knew in hindsight, I’d just use mascara.”
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She added, “I’d hate for anyone else to go through this.”
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Former President Joe Biden’s prostate cancer has spread further since his diagnosis last year, his son Hunter Biden revealed in a BBC interview that aired Friday.
“The cancer has spread, metastasized into his bones and further,” Hunter Biden told BBC Newsnight, describing his father’s condition as “very painful” and “very debilitating in many respects.”
“It’s really sad to watch,” the younger Biden went on. “The only thing that I’d say about my dad, about his health right now, is I wish he would complain more, because it’s not good.”
JOE BIDEN’S CANCER HAS SPREAD FURTHER, LEAVING HIM IN ‘VERY PAINFUL’ CONDITION, HUNTER REVEALS
Biden, 83, announced his diagnosis in May 2025, after news that a “small nodule” had been found in the former president’s prostate during a routine exam.
“While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive, which allows for effective management,” his office said at the time. “The president and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians.”
Former President Joe Biden’s prostate cancer has spread further since his diagnosis last year, his son Hunter Biden revealed. (Getty Images)
Biden later underwent hormone therapy and radiation treatment, completing a course of radiation at Penn Medicine Radiation Oncology in Philadelphia in October 2025, according to the former president’s spokesperson.
In addition to hormone therapy, common treatment options for prostate cancer include chemotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy and radiopharmaceutical treatments.
Fox News Digital reached out to Biden’s office for comment.
What to know about prostate cancer
Prostate cancer is a disease found in men that develops in the prostate gland. Cases have been on the rise in recent years, with overall incidence increasing about 3% annually from 2014 through 2021, according to the American Cancer Society.
Rates of advanced-stage prostate cancer rose about 5% per year during that period.
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About 333,830 new cases of prostate cancer are expected to be diagnosed in the U.S. in 2026, and about 36,320 men are expected to die from the disease, according to the American Cancer Society.
One in eight men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime, the same source stated.
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Older men are at a higher risk of the disease, with six in 10 cases diagnosed in patients 65 and older. The average age at diagnosis is 67, with men under 40 rarely affected.
Prostate cancer is the second-most common cancer in men, behind only skin cancer, the ACS noted.
Signs and symptoms
Among men who undergo routine prostate cancer screening, the disease is usually caught early before symptoms emerge, per the ACS.
Typical early symptoms include problems urinating, a weak or slow urinary stream or an increased need to urinate. Some men may also notice blood in the urine or bodily fluids.
Biden, 83, announced his diagnosis in May 2025, after news that a “small nodule” had been found in the former president’s prostate during a routine exam. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
More advanced symptoms may occur after the disease has spread. Those may include pain in the hips, back (spine), chest (ribs) or other areas, the ACS stated.
Men may also suffer from erectile dysfunction, weight loss, extreme fatigue, weakness in the legs or feet, or loss of bladder or bowel control.
Screening recommendations
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force states that men aged 55 to 69 years should have the option to undergo periodic prostate-specific antigen (PSA)-based screening to monitor for prostate cancer.
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“Before deciding whether to be screened, men should have an opportunity to discuss the potential benefits and harms of screening with their clinician and to incorporate their values and preferences in the decision,” the USPSTF states.
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force states that men aged 55 to 69 years should have the option to undergo periodic prostate-specific antigen (PSA)-based screening to monitor for prostate cancer. (iStock)
While screening offers a “small potential benefit” of reducing the chances of dying from the disease, the agency noted that some men may experience negative effects, including false-positive results, overdiagnosis and overtreatment, and treatment complications.
Alternative prostate cancer screening methods are currently being researched, including one that uses a non-invasive urine test, as Fox News Digital recently reported.
Survival rates
For localized prostate cancers, where the disease is contained within the prostate, the five-year survival rate is at least 99%, according to the ACS.
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For regional cases, where the disease has spread only to “nearby structures or lymph nodes,” the five-year survival rate is also 99% or greater.
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If the cancer has spread to other areas of the body, the five-year survival rate drops to 37%.
Actual survival rates may vary based on the patient’s age, overall health, how the cancer has progressed post-diagnosis, the disease’s response to treatment, and other factors, the ACS noted.
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