Peter Frampton made rock and roll history in the 1970s when his two-disc "Frampton Comes Alive" sold 11 million copies, more than any other live album up to that point.

Now, the veteran guitarist and singer-songwriter is making medical history as he bravely battles inclusion body myositis (IBM). It's an autoimmune disease marked by chronic, progressive muscle inflammation, muscle weakness and degeneration, fatigue, disability, and — in early stages — dizziness and a propensity for falling.

"To say that Peter has made history in music and in medicine is accurate in every way. He has now two legacies," said Frampton's rheumatologist, Dr. Lisa Christopher-Stine, who is the director of the Johns Hopkins Myositis Center in Baltimore.

These two legacies are inextricably intertwined for this 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominee — onstage and off — with or without a guitar in his hand.

"Every note I play now is so much more important to me because I know one of the notes I play will be the last I play within my lifetime," said Frampton, who now uses a cane and performs seated rather than standing. He concluded the spring leg of his "Never Ever Say Never" tour Sunday in San Diego.

"I'm a very optimistic person and am dealing with what I've got," Frampton continued. "My life has taken this course, and I'm fighting for what we want, which is a cure."

Best known for such hit songs as "Show Me the Way," "Baby, I Love Your Way" and "Do You Feel Like We Do?", Frampton is walking the walk and talking the talk in his quest to combat his disease, find effective treatment therapies and bring attention to other people with IBM.

In 2019, he publicly disclosed his condition during an interview on "CBS This Morning: Saturday." He established the Peter Frampton Myositis Research Fund at Johns Hopkins to raise money for research.

On what Frampton thought would be his farewell tour in 2019, he made extra time to meet with fans who have IBM after each concert. For all intents and purposes, he became the public face of IBM, using his public profile to bring attention to a medical condition many people had previously not known about.

The Myositis Association gave Frampton its 2023 Patient Ambassador Award. This honor was in recognition of his "extraordinary effort and success" in raising awareness of myositis diseases, raising funds to support TMA and its educational mission, and his championing legislative advocacy initiatives for rare diseases, including myositis.

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