Joe Manganiello reveals a seven-year health battle that included a life-saving organ amputation in his new memoir

Joe Manganiello has shared that he spent seven years fighting a series of life-threatening illnesses that eventually required a life-saving organ amputation. The 49-year-old actor is talking about this period of his life for the first time through his upcoming memoir, titled Bloodlines.

According to the press release for the book, Manganiello suffered from a series of autoimmune-related illnesses. These health problems caused major damage to his skin, thyroid, eyes, lungs, and digestive system. The release states the condition sparked a long fight for survival that left medical professionals with very few answers or clear explanations.

As per The Daily Mail, the memoir is scheduled to reach bookshelves on October 13. It details how this seven-year journey involved chronic pain and a deep existential crisis. Because traditional medicine could not give him the relief or answers he needed, Manganiello turned to some unconventional approaches.

A turn toward spirituality and family history during a long search for answers

The book describes how Manganiello began exploring shamans, pagan rituals, ancient myths, and the rebirth of his own spirituality. This path also led him to look closely into his own family history. Through that research, he discovered ancestors who had survived the Armenian genocide, as well as others who had lived with their own chronic illnesses.

The synopsis suggests the book is more than a medical account of his struggle. It describes the memoir as “a searching account of what happens when the life you have constructed can no longer contain the truth of what you carry.” It explores themes of illness, inheritance, masculinity, faith, and the various identities people build for themselves. 

The synopsis describes the book as ‘an essential meditation on loss and the work of living with what remains.’ Stories of sudden illness can be sobering, as seen in one mom’s flu that turned critical.

Manganiello has also had some major life changes in recent years. He and actress Caitlin O’Connor were first linked in September 2023 and made their relationship official in December of that same year. The couple later announced their engagement in October 2025, revealing that he had proposed earlier, in June.

This came after his split from Sofia Vergara in July 2023. At the time of that separation, they released a statement saying, “We have made the difficult decision to divorce. As two people that love and care for one another very much, we politely ask for respect for our privacy at this time as we navigate this new phase of our lives.”

Bloodlines is set to offer a deeply personal look at how the past lives on in the body and in the stories people tell about strength and survival. The memoir is described as a candid account of the challenges Manganiello faced while managing his health and personal life. Health scares can come from unexpected places, including a common dish that causes food-borne illness. It is a personal project that highlights a different side of the actor than the one audiences see on screen.