(RxWiki News) Jack Osbourne, the 26-year old reality TV star whose teenage antics on The Osbournes jump-started his acting career, has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.
Osbourne's diagnosis, reported by People magazine Sunday, came just a few weeks after he and his fiancée Lisa Stelly had their daughter, Pearl Clementine, on April 24.
He was diagnosed after seeking treatment for losing 60 percent of his vision in his right eye.
"Stay positive after a difficult or unexpected diagnosis."
Osbourne is the son of Black Sabbath rocker Ozzy Osbourne and Sharon Osbourne, a judge on America's Got Talent and a manager in the music industry. He and his sister Kelly joined their parents on the Emmy Award-winning reality show The Osbournes from 2002 to 2005.
His television career began after The Osbournes with bit parts or cameos in a number of movies and television shows, including Austin Powers: Goldmember, Dawson's Creek, The X Factor and That '70s Show before he had his own show, Union Jack.
He also starred in the reality show Jack Osbourne: Adrenaline Junkie for five seasons, during which he got into physical and mental shape for climbing El Capitan in California and then spent the next four seasons globetrotting and engaging in a range of adrenaline-powered adventures from rock climbing to jungle trekking.
Osbourne has also lent his energies to a handful of causes, including elephant conservation in the BBC's Saving Planet Earth series and a pair of nude photo shoots for Cosmopolitan magazine to raise awareness of testicular cancer.
Osbourne fought substance abuse during his adolescence, when he became an alcoholic and marijuana user by age 14 and went into rehab for an OxyContin addiction in 2003. He was also diagnosed with dyslexia when he was eight and with attention-deficit disorder when he was ten.
Multiple sclerosis is a nervous system disorder with symptoms such as loss of vision, fatigue, difficulty with balance, speech problems and loss of muscle control or strength. It is commonly diagnosed during a person's 20s or 30s and does not currently have a cure.
In all patients, multiple sclerosis attacks the nerves and can interrupt the transfer of messages throughout the body, but the level of severity varies considerably among people with the condition.
Although Osbourne has been quoted as feeling "angry and frustrated" following the diagnosis, he plans to work toward raising awareness of the condition and is working to stay positive. He told the BBC he would make lifestyle changes in addition to holistic therapies and drug treatments.
