What Is Aphasia? Explaining The Language Disorder That's Affecting Bruce Willis

BOSTON (CBS) -- The family of actor Bruce Willis announced Wednesday that the Hollywood star is "stepping away" from his award-winning career because of a recent aphasia diagnosis.

"To Bruce's amazing supporters, as a family we wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities," his family wrote in a post on his daughter Rumer's Instagram account. "As a result of this and with much consideration Bruce is stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him."

Below, WBZ-TV's Dr. Mallika Marshall explains the language disorder affecting the 67-year-old, and the speech difficulties it can cause.

What is aphasia?

People with aphasia have difficulty with language. They often can't find the right word to finish a thought or complete a sentence. They can also have trouble understanding conversations or reading words on a page. They may get lost in a conversation, have trouble with reading and writing and may repeat words and phrases.

There are different types of aphasia that can range in severity. Everyone's aphasia is unique.

Some people have more trouble expressing themselves. They understand what others are saying and know what they want to say but can't get the words out.

Some people hear what others are saying and can read words on a page but have trouble understanding the meaning. They can get words out but sometimes the words are jumbled and don't make sense.

It's important to remember that having aphasia alone does not mean the person is less intelligent or has problems with thinking. They have problems with language and communicating.

What causes it and can it be treated?

Aphasia is usually caused by damage to the language centers of the brain from a stroke or a brain injury. But it can also be caused by a brain tumor, an infection or dementia like with Alzheimer's disease.

Treatment depends on the underlying cause, but sometimes speech and language therapy can help.

Learn more about aphasia from The Cleveland Clinic and WebMD.