Dutch novelist Herman Koch says he has Parkinson’s disease

Dutch author Herman Koch has Parkinson’s disease, he said on Monday night during Eva Jinek’s talk show on NPO 1. The 73-year-old said he had experienced balance problems for several years before seeking medical advice, believing they might be a side effect of medication for prostate cancer.

“It kept getting worse, so I went to my GP after all,” Koch said. He said he is now taking medication that helps his body produce dopamine and that he feels better: “Much better, less gloomy; it worked straight away.”

Koch, best known internationally for his novel *The Dinner*, said he had been diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer several years ago. He told the programme that he has scans every six months and that the cancer is stable.