CTE cannot be diagnosed until the patient has died and their brain examined. But doctors said there are symptoms such as changes in cognition, mood and behavior. The American Brain Foundation said they can include difficulty thinking, short- and/or long-term memory loss, depression, anxiety, paranoia, headaches and suicidal thoughts or behavior.

The gunman in the deadly Midtown Manhattan shooting, Shane Tamura, wrote about the brain disease CTE in a note obtained by investigators.

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, is a brain disease linked to repeated hits to the head, often seen in military veterans and athletes.