July 9 (UPI) -- Former Cleveland Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar was diagnosed with cirrhosis, the third of four stages of liver failure, as well as Parkinson's disease, he announced Tuesday on X.
"Very thankful for my team of doctors and everyone's wishes," Kosar wrote on the social medial platform. "Thinking positive thoughts."
Kosar, 60, made the disclosure during an interview with Cleveland Magazine. He told Fox News last year that he sustained dozens of concussions throughout his career, leading to seizures and a reliance on medication.
"I was on probably 50-plus pills for 25-plus years -- this whole century -- trying to figure out a protocol and options that allow me to have a healthy lifestyle where I'm able to articulate, enunciate and communicate multiple-syllable words," Kosar told Fox News.
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"It wasn't always like that."
Kosar said he was diagnosed with Parkinson's -- a progressive degenerative brain disorder that affects the nervous system -- in February and was put on a liver transplant list last spring, but he feels better now because of a diet and exercise regimen.
The longtime Browns quarterback joined the franchise in the 1985 supplemental draft. The Browns released the 1987 Pro Bowl selection in 1993.
Kosar finished that season with the Dallas Cowboys, backing up quarterback Troy Aikman and earning a Super Bowl ring. He spent his final three seasons with the Miami Dolphins.
He later became a part owner of the NHL's Florida Panthers and Arena Football League's Las Vegas Gladiators. Kosar also worked as a consultant for the Browns and hosted "The Bernie Kosar Show" podcast.
"I strongly believe in the power of positive thinking,'' Kosar told Cleveland Magazine. "For me, it's not just a slogan. I believe that positive energy can be manifested in our brains, and I love to live in the space of positivity.
"I want to think about things that are helpful. It sounds like I'm getting on a soap box here, but I visualize good health.
"It's not so much that I'm trying to sell it to myself, or that I'm in denial, as it is choosing to be positive. Because everybody's got something. We've all got health issues to some degree, we all have bumps in the road.''
