CHICAGO, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- U.S. civil rights activist Jesse Jackson announced on Friday that he has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
In a statement posted on the website of the Chicago-based Rainbow Push Coalition he founded, the African-American politician said after a battery of tests he was diagnosed with the same disease that bested his father.
"For me, a Parkinson's diagnosis is not a stop sign but rather a signal that I must make lifestyle changes and dedicate myself to physical therapy in hopes of slowing the disease' s progression," he wrote.
Jackson, a two-time candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988, has been a prominent civil rights activist since the 1960s, when he worked with Martin Luther King for justice and equality.
Most recently, the 76-year-old has fought through the Rainbow Push Coalition for social change and a safe society in Chicago, which has been labelled as "murder capital of America."
Parkinson's disease affects the nerve cells in the brain that produce dopamine. Its symptoms include muscle rigidity, tremors and changes in speech and gait. Treatments can help relieve symptoms, but there is no cure.
Up to 10 million people worldwide suffer from the condition, making it the second most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer's disease.
