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Peter Frampton vows to keep performing despite rare disease diagnosis

June 10, 2024

Legendary English-American guitarist, singer, and songwriter Peter Frampton, 74, tells People magazine that he's a "fighter" and will continue performing for as long as possible, despite weakening of his arms and hands due to inclusion body myosititis (IBM), one of the group of muscle diseases known as the inflammatory myopathies.

The "Show Me the Way" singer says IBM, characterized by chronic, progressive muscle inflammation accompanied by muscle weakness, has both impacted his ability to stand on stage as well as the finger dexterity needed for his guitar playing "just because of the pressure that I need to press down on the frets."

For some individuals, the disorder can involve weakness in the wrists and fingers that causes difficulty with pinching, buttoning, or gripping objects, according to NIH. There may be weakness of the wrist and finger muscles and atrophy of the forearm muscles and quadricep muscles in the legs.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee says doctors identified his condition after a fall onstage in mid-2015—the early stages of the disease are marked by a propensity for falling. Frampton first shared his IBM diagnosis in 2019 to CBS This Morning: Saturday.

IBM is generally resistant to all therapies and its rate of progression appears to be unaffected by currently available treatments. However, Frampton has used his public recognition to help advance research and drug trials on IBM by starting the Peter Frampton Fund at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Sources:

Barilla, Chris. (2024, June 6). People. Peter Frampton Says He's a 'Fighter" Despite Inclusion Body Myositis Starting to 'Affect the Way I Play' (Exclusive). https://people.com/peter-frampton-says-fighter-despite-inclusion-body-myositis-8658309

NIH. (Last reviewed 2023, November 8). National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Inclusion Body Myositis. https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/inclusion-body-myositis