In House M.D., what inherited neurological disease does Remy Hadley, or Thirteen, carry?

Remy Hadley, known as Thirteen, carries the gene for Huntington’s disease in House M.D. The inherited neurological disorder becomes one of the character’s defining long-term storylines.

Huntington’s disease is caused by a mutation in the HTT gene and is inherited in an autosomal dominant pattern. A person who inherits the disease-causing variant has a high chance of developing symptoms during life, although the age of onset and progression can vary. The condition can affect movement, cognition, and behavior.

The series uses Thirteen’s genetic status to explore uncertainty rather than presenting a simple immediate diagnosis. She knows that she may eventually develop the disease because her mother has it, and she wrestles with whether to learn more, plan for the future, or avoid defining her life by a possible illness.

This storyline is fictionalized, but the underlying disease is real. Huntington’s disease is not the same as Parkinson’s disease, Wilson’s disease, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Those conditions have different causes, clinical patterns, and inheritance relationships.