The son of actor Gary Sinise, McCanna "Mac" Sinise, died at the age of 33 on January 5 due to the rare form of bone cancer he suffered from. It was the Forrest Gump protagonist himself who communicated the news on February 27 to his followers through his charitable foundation, painfully announcing that they were "heartbroken."
"Like any family that experiences a loss like this, we are heartbroken and have been handling it the best we can," wrote the star of hits like Apollo 13 and The Green Mile. "As parents, it is very difficult to lose a child. My heart goes out to everyone who has suffered a similar loss and to anyone who has lost a loved one."
Mac was the middle child of the actor, who also has two daughters - Sophie (35) and Ella (32) - with his wife, Moira Harris. They all describe the young man's death as "heartbreaking", but are somehow grateful that Mac no longer "has to suffer."
The actor and his family also took the opportunity to send their thanks to everyone who has supported them all this time both personally and through the Gary Sinise Foundation, where they also published a small tribute to the young man.
"Our family's fight against cancer lasted five and a half years and became increasingly more difficult as time went on," Sinise explained in her statement. "While our hearts ache for missing him, we are comforted knowing that Mac is no longer in trouble and we are inspired and touched by how he did it."
The actor's son was facing an incurable illness, but in the words of his father, he never stopped trying. "He fought an uphill battle against a cancer that has no cure, but he never stopped trying. Mac loved movies and we always told him that he reminded us of the soldier at the end of the extraordinary film 1917: On the Battlefield, the bombs explode around him, knocking him down one after another, but he keeps getting up, refusing to give up and keeps running forward."
Mac Sinise suffered from chordoma, a rare type of bone cancer that primarily originates in the tissue inside the spine - most often near the tailbone - or in the skull. It grows very slowly, and many patients do not notice changes for years, which often makes its diagnosis difficult. Globally, one case of chordoma is diagnosed per million people each year.
The young man received his diagnosis in 2018, just two months after his mother found out that she had breast cancer, as the CSI:NY star revealed. Moira Harris went into remission and is cancer-free after treatment. Unfortunately, Mac Sinise did not have the same fortune with his various treatments.
"With Mac, after surgery to remove the initial tumor in September 2018 and another spinal procedure in February 2019 to clear what looked like an infection," his father explains, revealing that "unfortunately, a follow-up scan in "May 2019 would show that his chordoma had returned and was spreading."
The actor, 68, wanted to share his son's happiest moments. A music lover, he played drums and had managed to produce his own album, Mac Sinise: Resurrection and Revival. "Mac was truly a light to all of us," says his father. "He was an incredible inspiration to those who knew and loved him. He faced his battle with grace, courage and love. Even with setback after setback, he never stopped living, learning, creating, giving and loving."
