What is CTE and its connection to the NFL and other contact sports?
The following is a breakdown of what CTE is and its relationship to contact sports.
CTE is a degenerative disease caused by repeated impacts to the head, including both concussive and asymptomatic non-concussive hits. Doctors are only able to make a confirmed diagnosis after death, though common symptoms including aggression and dementia may surface while a patient is living.
Research has found a connection between CTE and athletes who have competed in tackle football at both the professional and amateur levels. The NFL has acknowledged a link between football-related concussions and CTE. In 2015, the league agreed to a roughly $1-billion settlement for concussion-related lawsuits with thousands of retired players after the deaths of some high-profile players.
Boston University's CTE Center diagnosed 345 former NFL players with CTE out of 376 studied, as of 2023.
'If they've been exposed to football for a long time, that increases their risk,' Dr. Ann McKee, director of the CTE Center, told Reuters.
Tamura did not compete in the NFL, the highest level of professional American football, but played at a Los Angeles charter school until graduating in 2016.
Junior Seau, a 12-time Pro Bowl linebacker and Hall of Famer, died by suicide in 2012. A study of his brain later showed he had suffered from CTE, a case that accelerated the national conversation around brain injuries in the NFL. Former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez, who was found guilty of first-degree murder in 2015 and died by suicide in prison in 2017, was found to have pronounced signs of the disease, according to Boston University findings. Ex-NFL player Phillip Adams gunned down six people and himself in 2021. McKee found he had suffered Stage 2 CTE after examining his brain.
Concussions fell to a record low during the most recent NFL season, with the league crediting improvements in helmet technology as well as rule changes for the decline. Enhanced concussion protocols were implemented in 2022 after the NFL faced intense criticism over head injuries suffered by Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. The league previously banned dangerous helmet-to-helmet hits.
But some researchers, including McKee, have said the measures fall short.
'They have addressed concussion, but that's the tip of the iceberg. The real issue is the asymptomatic hits to the head that don't cause concussion, and there's been very little done to address that,' said McKee.
Researchers have identified a connection between CTE and other sports, including rugby, ice hockey, and soccer. A group action in the United Kingdom involves more than 1,000 mostly former rugby players, including many high-profile internationals, who say the sport's governing bodies failed to do enough to protect them from potential brain injuries despite being aware of the risks.
World Rugby, the sport's governing body, has introduced a series of player welfare measures in recent years in an attempt to minimize concussions and head injuries in the sport.
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Toronto Sun
8 hours ago
- Toronto Sun
NYC shooter's brain will be tested for CTE, officials say
Published Aug 01, 2025 • 6 minute read This undated image provided by Las Vegas Dept. of Motor Vehicle shows Shane Tamura. (Las Vegas Dept. of Motor Vehicle via AP) AP The brain of the gunman in Monday's deadly shootings at the Manhattan building that houses the NFL's offices will be evaluated for the degenerative disorder from which he claimed to be suffering, according to the city's medical examiner's office. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account A spokesperson for New York City's Office of Chief Medical Examiner said testing and evaluation for chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) will take place over multiple weeks in an assessment of possible diseases of the brain, spinal cord and nerves of the shooter, identified by authorities as 27-year-old Shane Tamura of Las Vegas. '[T]he medical examiner is performing a neuropathology assessment as part of the complete autopsy,' a member of the office's public affairs and communications staff wrote in an email Thursday to The Washington Post. Asked to clarify whether screening for CTE, which typically involves a special diagnostic staining process, is certain to be part of the assessment, the office said by email: 'Yes, our office has neuropathology expertise in house. The nature of the testing is expected to take multiple weeks.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Four people, including a New York City police officer, were killed when the gunman opened fire Monday inside the high-rise office building in Midtown Manhattan. The gunman then fatally shot himself in the chest, authorities said. An NFL employee was wounded in the shooting at 345 Park Avenue. Investigators found a three-page handwritten note in Tamura's wallet that referenced CTE, according to a person familiar with the law enforcement investigation. 'Study my brain please,' the note read. According to a copy of the note obtained by the New York Post, the gunman also apparently mentioned by name Boston University, a leader in CTE research, and prominent researchers, including Ann McKee and Bennet Omalu. New York Mayor Eric Adams (D) did not specify Tuesday whether Tamura's brain will be tested for CTE, saying during an interview with CNN: 'The medical examiner here in the city, he will make that determination on the next steps in collaboration with the district attorney in Manhattan County.' Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. CTE can only be diagnosed posthumously. The brains of many high-profile athletes have been donated to the UNITE Brain Bank and studied at Boston University's CTE Center. Its CTE diagnoses include Aaron Hernandez, the former NFL tight end who was serving a life sentence for murder when he died by suicide in 2017 and was diagnosed with stage 3 CTE, and Phillip Adams, a 32-year-old former NFL player who killed six people and himself in 2021 and was found to have stage 2 CTE. Chris Nowinski, the CEO of the Concussion Legacy Foundation, which works with the BU center and helps operate the brain bank, said he didn't anticipate Tamura's brain making its way to BU's researchers unless requested by New York's medical examiner's office. Unlike medical examiners in many other cities, the New York City office has doctors qualified to make a CTE diagnosis, he said. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'They have neuropathologists on their team who understand CTE,' Nowinski said in a phone interview. 'They can do the study for CTE and all other known brain abnormalities themselves. Whether they ask anyone to review their findings, I don't know. But I have full confidence in them.' Nowinski said he was confident that CTE would be among the pathologies looked for by the New York officials. In a more routine case, CTE might not be on the checklist. The diagnostic process involves first fixing a brain sample in a formalin solution to harden. Researchers then stain the sample to highlight deposits of tau protein, an indicator of CTE. 'I'm sure they'll probably do the same kind of work-up we do,' Nowinski said. 'We don't just look for CTE. We look for all brain abnormalities – could see genetic disorders, tumours, all sorts of things.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. He cautioned that even if Tamura is determined to have CTE, that wouldn't necessarily explain his actions in the Manhattan high-rise and certainly wouldn't rule out other contributing factors such as mental illness, genetic disorders or drug use. Experts in the field don't expect quick answers. The process for studying the brain and diagnosing CTE can take two or more weeks and wouldn't necessarily be made public until the medical examiner's office and investigators choose to release the findings. In the case of Adams, a CTE diagnosis wasn't made public for eight months. Most high-profile CTE cases have been linked to NFL players, and researchers don't know how prevalent CTE might be in athletes who only played through high school. One 2023 study from Boston University focused on athletes who died before the age of 30. It included the brains of 45 players who didn't play football beyond high school; 14 of them – 31 percent – were found to have CTE. (Researchers note the brains were donated by families who sought a neuropathologic examination and might have suspected CTE.) This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Tamura played football in high school but not college or the NFL. The note found in his wallet cited Terry Long, a former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman who took his own life in 2005. The Allegheny County coroner's office first ruled Long died of meningitis, but a revised death certificate filed one month later listed the manner of Long's death as suicide from drinking antifreeze. The medical examiner's office called Long's football-related brain injuries a contributing factor to his death but said he did not die as a direct result of them, the Associated Press reported in January 2006. The note found in Tamura's wallet said the 'league knowingly concealed the dangers to our brains to maximize profits' and 'failed us.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Adams said in broadcast interviews Tuesday that the shooter was targeting the NFL. 'From our preliminary investigation, he took the wrong elevator bank up to the NFL headquarters,' Adams told CBS. 'Instead, it took him to Rudin Management. And that is where he carried out additional shootings and took the lives of additional employees.' The NFL has closed its offices through at least the end of next week. Commissioner Roger Goodell instructed employees to work remotely until then. Goodell participated in a virtual town hall for NFL employees Wednesday and spoke to NBC from the New York area during its broadcast of Thursday night's Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio. 'It's a difficult thing, particularly when you're dealing with a senseless act like this,' Goodell said. 'There are no excuses for those senseless acts. They're hard for all of us to understand. When it inflicts pain on people you know and people you care about and people that we deal with on a daily basis, that's particularly hard.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Goodell attended police officer Didarul Islam's funeral Thursday. 'It hits home,' Goodell said. 'The loss – the unnecessary and unexplainable loss. … It was a difficult, emotional afternoon but also a tremendous, heartwarming service for him.' Goodell said he spent about an hour at a hospital Wednesday with the NFL employee, Craig Clementi, who was injured in the shooting. Goodell did not refer to Clementi by name but called him an 'amazing young man.' He called his condition 'stable and improving' and added: 'We're optimistic about his recovery.' The NFL held a moment of silence before the kickoff of Thursday night's preseason-opening game between the Los Angeles Chargers and Detroit Lions. 'This is an attack on humanity,' Goodell said. 'This is an attack on our communities. This is an attack on New York. This is an attack on our way of life.' Read More Sunshine Girls Toronto & GTA World World Tennis
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Canadians' health data at risk of being handed over to U.S. authorities, experts warn
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Photo: Submitted by Michael Geist For example, Geist points out, the U.S. passed the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data (CLOUD) Act (new window) in 2018, which can compel companies to disclose customer information for criminal investigations, even if it's stored outside the United States. The law allows for bilateral agreements with the U.S. and other countries. Canada and the U.S. began negotiations (new window) in 2022. The companies have Canadian laws that may say they've got to provide appropriate protections for that data, Geist said. But they may have U.S. law that could compel them to disclose that information. Canada's laws, Geist says, have not yet found a way to respond to that. How health data could be used The CMAJ commentary says serious privacy, security, and economic risks arise when companies in other countries hold and use Canadian data. 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(The cloud companies say their customers own and control their own data.) We should be the ones to benefit from that, Geist said. We should be the ones who are entitled to appropriate privacy protections. Enlarge image (new window) Dr. Sheryl Spithoff, with the family and community medicine department at the University of Toronto, says patient data needs additional protections. Photo: (Turgut Yeter/CBC) Dr. Sheryl Spithoff, an assistant professor at the University of Toronto, says these risks highlight how Canada's privacy laws fall short. This data is patient data. It belongs to patients. That should be used for reasons that are in their interests, that bring them benefit, that don't cause harm. Tech companies respond The CMAJ commentary says three U.S. cloud companies dominate: Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services. Google told CBC News that customer data belongs to our customers, not to Google Cloud. 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Amazon said it does not disclose customer information in response to government demands unless we're required to do so to comply with a legally valid and binding order. In a statement, a spokesperson for Amazon Web Services wrote there have been no data requests to AWS that resulted in disclosure to the U.S. government of enterprise or government content data stored outside the U.S. since we started reporting the statistic. Limits to Canada's privacy laws Privacy experts say the failure of Canada's privacy laws to keep pace with changing technology has put the country's data sovereignty at risk. Geist says strengthening provincial laws and the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, known as PIPEDA, could help create a guardrail against potential U.S. data requests reaching into Canada. In his commentary, Geist calls for stronger penalties for unauthorized disclosure of personal information without consent and guidance that foreign court orders related to Canadian data are unenforceable in Canada. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada says PIPEDA applies when transferring data across the border, but Geist says the law itself isn't robust enough. Geist also calls for the country to develop Canadian cloud servers for health data, and to ensure that data is hosted on Canadian soil. The wealth of health information generated by the health-care system should stay in Canada and benefit Canadians, Geist says. He and his co-authors see the potential for health AI algorithms to be developed in Canada by Canadian companies, with robust safeguards, to support health-care decisions based on data representative of Canada's population. Alison Northcott (new window) · CBC News · National Reporter Alison Northcott is a national reporter for CBC News in Montreal, covering health, business and politics. Born in Winnipeg, she is a graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University and has over 15 years experience in journalism. With files from Christine Birak and Melanie Glanz
