Prince Frederik of Luxembourg dies at 22 from rare disease: His last words are known
Prince Frederik of Luxembourg died in Paris at the age of 22 (photo: instagram.com_polgfoundation)
Prince Frederik of Luxembourg passed away at the age of 22 due to a rare congenital disease. He was very weak in his last days but managed to say goodbye to his entire family, reports POLG.
At the age of 22, the youngest son of Prince Robert of Luxembourg and Princess Julie of Nassau, Prince Frederik, died. Since childhood, Prince Frederik had been suffering from a rare genetic disease - mitochondrial dysfunction associated with mutations in the POLG gene.
Prince Frederik was born on March 18, 2002 in Aix-en-Provence. He spent his childhood in London, Geneva, and Montreux.
He was diagnosed with the rare disease only at the age of 14, although it is congenital. The diagnosis of POLG causes a wide range of symptoms, which makes it very difficult to diagnose. And there is no cure for it.
Mitochondrial dysfunction is a group of genetic diseases that lead to a lack of energy in cells. The disease can affect almost all internal organs of a person: brain, nerves, muscles, kidneys, heart, liver, eyes, and pancreas.
"As is the case with 300 million people like Frederik worldwide, these diseases are usually difficult to recognize, even for doctors, and patients' families may never know they have the disease because it can only be detected at a late stage of progression. It can be compared to a faulty battery that is never fully charged, constantly discharging and eventually losing its charge," said Frederik's father, Prince Robert.
Prince Frederik of Luxembourg (photo: facebook.com_profile)
Frederi dedicated his life to spreading awareness of the rare disease. He founded the POLG Foundation and participated in medical trials to find a cure.
On February 28, Prince Frederik gathered the whole family to say goodbye to everyone in person - his brother Alexander, sister Charlotte, cousins Charly, Louis, and Donall, brother-in-law Mansour, aunt Charlotte and uncle Mark. And of course, his parents.
"Frederick found the strength and courage to say goodbye to each of us in turn. In his last days, he almost lost the ability to speak, but he managed to ask one last question. It was: "Papa, are you proud of me?" He needed confirmation that he had done everything he could in his short and beautiful life and that he could finally move on," Prince Robert said.
Prince Frederik's condition deteriorated due to an infection that left him unable to move and gave him a complication - pneumonia.
Prince Frederik of Luxembourg died at the age of 22 (photo: POLG)
The prince died on March 1 in Paris, surrounded by his loving family. The family announced the prince's death only 9 days later.
"Frederik knows that he is my superhero, as he is for our entire family, and for so many good friends, and now largely through his POLG Foundation for many people around the world. Part of his superpower was his ability to inspire and lead by example. Frederik was born with a special capacity for positivity, joy, and determination. When he was little, I always said that if there was one child of ours that I would never have to worry about, it would be him. He had social skills like no other, an amazing sense of humor, an emotional intelligence and compassion that was off the charts, a sense of justice, honesty and integrity that knew no bounds," Prince Robert wrote in a statement on the POLG Foundation website.
Prince Frederik of Luxembourg with his family (photo: POLG Foundation)
