Nearly three years after Gary Sinise lost his son to a rare form of spine cancer, his family is reflecting on their resilience.
The Oscar-nominated "Forrest Gump" star, 71, his wife and their daughters spoke with People about the various challenges they have overcome for a Nov. 4 cover story.
With the upcoming Nov. 10 release of Sinise's memoir, "Graceful Warrior: The True Story of a Son, a Father and a Family Who Carried Each Other Through," they opened up about McCanna "Mac" Sinise's five-year chordoma battle – which resulted in his death at 33 on Jan. 5, 2024 – and how they weathered adversity together.
"We surrounded him when he took his last breath," Sinise's daughter, Sophie, told the magazine. "As incredibly hard as it was, we got a glimpse
into eternal life. And the gifts keep unfolding. You feel his presence everywhere."
What cancer was Gary Sinise's son diagnosed with?
Soon after Gary Sinise's wife, Moira Sinise, began chemotherapy following a stage 3 breast cancer diagnosis in 2018, Mac Sinise had an MRI for persistent tailbone pain and was diagnosed with chordoma, "a slow growing cancer of tissue found inside the spine" that affects about one in a million people worldwide, according to the National Cancer Institute.
At times, both mother and son were hospitalized at the same time. The Emmy winner writes in his memoir, per People, that "a good day meant I didn’t need to take Mac or Moira to the emergency room."
Though Moira Sinise was in remission after eight rounds of chemotherapy and 35 radiation sessions, Mac Sinise's "body was just destroyed," sister Ella said. He "tried 25 different drugs over a four-and-a-half year period," Gary Sinise said, noting that he remained optimistic throughout the process due in no small part to the veterans and military families he's met over the decades.
Once he wrapped Season 4 of Netflix's "13 Reasons Why," Gary Sinise pivoted to focusing on his loved ones. He took on nighttime caregiving duties such as changing his son's catheter and helping him in and out of the wheelchair he used; by 2023, Mac Sinise was largely paralyzed from the chest down.
"Family was the priority," the "Apollo 13" actor said. "One of the blessings is that I had succeeded in Hollywood, and I could afford to be there for my family 24/7."
"Sick Mac was still a beautiful person," sister Ella recalled. Gary Sinise previously said his son, who'd been an "exceptional drummer," used the limited mobility in his right arm and the fingers of his left hand to make music in his hospital bed.
Why Gary Sinise left Hollywood for Tennessee
Following his death, the Gary Sinise Foundation released several albums of Mac Sinise's music, all titled "Resurrection & Revival."
Gary and Moira Sinise – as well as their nonprofit, which focuses on aid for veterans, service members, first responders and their families – left California and relocated to the Nashville area.
That's where their daughters' families live, and along with a proximity to military bases, Gary Sinise can take advantage of the lack of state income tax. As he told The Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network, in 2024: "I didn't want to keep throwing money away."
These days, the actor is focused on philanthropic work such as feeding first responders and building homes for "severely wounded heroes." Gary Sinise also continues to put on concerts with his band, Gary Sinise and the Lt. Dan Band, across the nation. They have performed his son's music, including during PBS' "National Memorial Day Concert" in May, during which they played with the National Symphony Orchestra.
"We didn’t get the miracle we were all praying for, but there were other miracles, like the way Mac lived his life," Gary Sinise said. "He sure showed us grace under fire."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Gary Sinise opens up about son Mac's final years before his death at 33
