Duck Dynasty‘S Phil Robertson is in the “early stages” of Alzheimer’s disease, his family has confirmed.

Phil’s son Jase Robertson shared his 78-year-old father’s health update on the Friday, Dec. 6, podcast episode of “Unashamed with the Robertson Family.”

“According to the doctors, they are sure he has a blood disorder that is causing all sorts of problems,” Jase, 55, explained on the podcast. “It’s accelerated and is causing problems with his entire body.”

Jase added that the diagnosis has been difficult for his father both mentally and physically, sharing: “He’s just not doing well. He’s really struggling.”

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Additionally, Phil’s health has deteriorated due to an ongoing blood disorder, Jase said.

Phil did not appear on the podcast episode due to health reasons, making it difficult to do so despite the reality star’s request.

“He keeps saying, ‘I’m going to come back to the podcast,'” Jase said. “But I think, ‘Well, Phil, you can barely walk around without screaming in pain, and your memory ain’t what it used to be.’ He says, ‘Tell me about it.’ So he’s literally unable – I think he would agree – to just sit down and have a conversation.”

Phil rose to fame alongside his family in the reality series about duck hunting Duck Dynastywhich aired from 2012 to 2017. In addition to Jase, Phil also has grown children Willie, 52, Yep46, and Alan Robertson59, with wife Kay Robertson76.

He also discovered in 2020 that he had a daughter, Phyllis Thomas49, was born after an affair that took place 45 years earlier.

On the podcast, Jase said the family rallied around Phil to help him battle the terminal illness.

“We’re trying to do a lot of things to figure out how to make him more comfortable and maybe improve his memory,” he said. “We have a team of doctors and they all agree that there is no cure for his disease. And what are you doing? We’re trying to make him a little more comfortable.”

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Jase previously spoke about his love for his family in 2020 after finding out he had a sister he didn’t know about.

He shared that for this reason he was determined to get to know Phyllis and be friends.

“I fight with my family a lot, but I supported them,” Jase explained in a May 2020 episode of his “Unashamed” podcast. “I love them. I’m there for you. So I had already made that decision. I was willing to go either way. I would love her no matter what. But I thought, “I really like her,” which is great.