Degenerative brain disease CTE first found in female professional athlete

Australian researchers have discovered the first case of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in a female professional athlete.

The brain of former Australian footballer Heather Anderson was donated to science after the 28-year-old died by suicide in 2022. She was found to meet the criteria for low-stage CTE.

“As the representation of women in professional contact sports grows, it seems likely that more CTE cases will be identified in female athletes,” wrote the authors of the paper, which was published June 30 in the journal. Acta Neuropathologica.

“Given women’s greater susceptibility to concussions, there is an urgent need to recognize the risks and put strategies and policies in place to minimize traumatic brain injuries in increasingly popular female contact sports.”

CTE is a progressive brain disease associated with repeated traumatic brain injuries, including concussions and repeated blows to the head. The disease can cause memory loss, violent mood swings, depression, and other cognitive problems.

A football player since the age of 5

CTE has become a concern for many sports organizations, including the National Hockey League. The Concussion Legacy Foundation Canada says 16 of 17 NHL players surveyed have been diagnosed with CTE.

The report’s six authors say that contact sports where head injuries are common have historically been dominated by men, which is likely why CTE is more commonly found in men. Only a “handful” of CTE cases had been reported in women to date, and none so far in professional athletes, the report said.

Anderson, who played Australian rules football from the age of five, including seven matches in the women’s version of the Australian Football League in 2017, was also an Australian Army soldier. The report notes that some cases of CTE have been diagnosed among military members with repeated head trauma, but no concussions have been reported during Anderson’s nine years of service.

Anderson had no history of alcohol or over-the-counter drug abuse, and she had shown no signs of depression or unusual behavior in the months leading up to her death, the authors said.

“She had suffered one diagnosed concussion, with four other possible concussions not formally diagnosed but suspected by the family,” the authors wrote.

The family donated her brain to the Australian Sports Brain Bank.

The report says there is not enough data to link CTE and suicide, but notes that “suicide deaths are not uncommon in the cohorts where CTE is sought at autopsy.”

“It was a surprise, but not a surprise,” Heather’s father, Brian Anderson, told the Australian current affairs program 7:30 am.

“I haven’t really gone out of my way to discuss it with people. And I think now that this report has been published, I’m trying to think a little bit about how it might work out for female athletes everywhere.”