The brain of former WWE Superstar Ashley Massaro may be donated to a prominent doctor who researches chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a condition associated with multiple head injuries, her lawyer told The Post on Saturday.
Massaro, 39, best known as the winner of the 2005 WWE RAW Diva Search, died Thursday in an apparent suicide at her Smithtown, Long Island, home after years battling depression.
The one-time “Survivor” contestant was among 60 former pro wrestlers who sued WWE in 2016, claiming the company was responsible for neurological injuries suffered in the ring. The suit was dismissed by a federal judge in Connecticut in September, and is pending appeal, according to her lawyer, Konstantine Kyros. The next court date is July 8.
In a 15-page affidavit she filed as part of the case Kyros provided to the Post, Massaro said she suffered numerous concussions and “a multitude of other injuries” that she blamed on a lack of training, and that WWE did not provide proper treatment when she was hurt in the ring.
That’s why, Kyros said, it’s important to examine her brain now.
He said six other wrestlers he’s represented were diagnosed with CTE after their deaths by Dr. Bennet Omalu now a professor at the University of California, Davis.
Known as the “Concussion Doctor,” Omaul rose to fame publishing findings related to the disease among football players.
CTE can only be confirmed after death.
Kryos said he asked Massaro’s mother and sister about donating her brain. “They were a little upset about it,” he said, adding that there’s a little time to make the decision. “It was Ashley’s wishes to donate her brain,” he claimed.