Sandra Bullock's partner Bryan Randall has died aged 57, following a 'three-year battle with ALS'.
Bullock, 59, met the model-turned-photographer when he snapped her son Louis' birthday party back in 2015, going on to go public with their relationship later that year.
Randall had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) three years ago, but chose to keep his condition private.
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Confirming his death in a statement to People, his family said: "It is with great sadness that we share that on Aug. 5, Bryan Randall passed away peacefully after a three-year battle with ALS.
"Bryan chose early to keep his journey with ALS private and those of us who cared for him did our best to honor his request."
It continued: "We are immensely grateful to the tireless doctors who navigated the landscape of this illness with us and to the astounding nurses who became our roommates, often sacrificing their own families to be with ours."
The statement, signed by Randall's 'loving family', added: "At this time we ask for privacy to grieve and to come to terms with the impossibility of saying goodbye to Bryan."
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Bullock, who is mum to 13-year-old Louis and 10-year-old daughter Laila, previously described Randall as the 'love of her life', saying they enjoyed a blended family that also included her partner's child.
During a December 2021 appearance on Jada Pinkett-Smith's Red Table Talk, the actor said: "I found the love of my life. We share two beautiful children - three children, [Randall's] older daughter. It's the best thing ever," Bullock said at the time.
"I don't wanna say do it like I do it, but I don't need a paper to be a devoted partner and devoted mother."
Bullock added: "I don't need to be told to be ever present in the hardest of times. I don't need to be told to weather a storm with a good man."
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ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, is a fatal condition that is the most common type of motor neurone disease.
According to the ALS Association, it is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord.
It explains that the first part of the name - 'amyotrophic' comes from the Greek language, with 'A' meaning 'no', 'myo' referring to muscle and 'tropic' meaning nourishment.
Therefore, amyotrophic means 'no muscle nourishment,' and when a muscle has no nourishment, it "atrophies" or wastes away.
"'Lateral' refers to the areas in a person's spinal cord where portions of the nerve cells that signal and control the muscles are located," the ALS Association adds.
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"As this area degenerates, it leads to scarring or hardening ('sclerosis') in the region."
Topics: Celebrity
Jess Hardiman