Prince Frederik of Luxembourg died at the age of 22 of Polg’s mitochondrial disease, a rare genetic disorder with which he was born, his family announced.
Frederik de Nassau died in Paris on March 1, one day after the day of rare -recognized international diseases, which takes place on the last day of February, said Prince Robert of Luxembourg in a press release published on the website of the POLG Foundation. Prince Frederik founded the organization in 2021 to help educate the condition.
With kind permission: Polgfoundation.org
Prince Robert; His wife, Princess Julie de Nassau; And the brothers and sisters of Prince Frederik, Alexander and Charlotte, were all able to say goodbye on the last day, said the patriarch. One of the last things Frederik asked him was: “Dad, are you proud of me?” According to Prince Robert.
“He had barely been able to speak for several days, so the clarity of these words was as surprising as the weight of the moment was deep,” wrote Prince Robert. “The answer was very easy, and he had heard it so many times … But at that moment, he needed to reassure that he had contributed everything he could in his short and beautiful existence and that he could finally move on.”
The young prince was known as a joyful person with “an indomitable thirst for life”. He learned Italian and was a big fan of the American adaptation of “The Office”, which he saw more than 10 times in his entirety, said Prince Robert.
What is Polg mitochondrial disease?
POLG is the name of a gene that provides instructions to manufacture the active part, called alpha subunit, of a protein called gamma polymerase, according to the National Library of Medicine.
There are several diseases and conditions related to POLG, including Alpers-Huttenlocher syndrome, the spectrum of ataxia neuropathy and the spectrum of myocerebrohepatopathy.
Frederik was born with Polg’s disease, but he was not diagnosed until the age of 14, said his father.
According to the POLG foundation, Frederik mitochondrial disorder had “deprived the energy cells of the body” and can cause a variety of symptoms, including progressive dysfunction and a failure of several organs.
“We could compare it to a defective battery which never completely recharges, is in a constant state of exhaustion and possibly loses power,” said the POLG foundation on its website.
Experts estimate that around 2% of the population bears POLG mutations. However, the total number of people with POLG diseases is not clear. An adult study in Australia with POLG mutations revealed that 10% of them had POLG -related diseases.
