Lance Bass opens up about living with psoriatic arthritis for first time

NSYNC alum Lance Bass opens up about living with psoriatic arthritis for first time.

The singer and dancer, 43, was diagnosed with the condition — which affects nearly 1 million Americans — five years ago after experiencing debilitating symptoms for quite some time.

"I had symptoms before, but you know, I kind of just dealt with it, not knowing exactly what it was. I was a dancer my whole life, so I just kind of figured it was because of dancing," he tells PEOPLE.

"It definitely started in my shoulders and then in my knees," he continues. "And again, to me, that was just such a sign of dancer pain, so I just thought it was completely normal, totally ignoring the signs."

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