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Mark Ruffalo recalls getting diagnosed with a 'golf ball-sized' tumor... days before his wife gave birth to their first child

Oscar nominee Mark Ruffalo recalled learning he had a 'golf-sized' brain tumor, in 2001, that left one side of his face 'totally paralyzed' for a year.

While appearing on Monday's episode of the SmartLess podcast with hosts Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett, the actor, 56, described learning that he 'had a brain tumor after the success of You Can Count on Me.' The four-time Academy Award nominee, who gained international recognition for playing The Hulk since 2012 in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, noted that the surgery risks included a 20 percent chance of 'killing' the nerve on the left side of his face and a 70 percent chance of losing his hearing in that ear. While appearing on Monday's episode of the SmartLess podcast with hosts Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett, the actor, 56, described learning that he 'had a brain tumor after the success of You Can Count on Me' (pictured at the time in March 2001)

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