Sepsis and Celebrities

Many celebrities and public figures have been affected by sepsis. Some survived their bout with the disease, but others died. Sepsis is an equal opportunity illness – it can affect anyone of any social status, age, ethnicity, or beliefs.

All too often, however, the media that report celebrities illnesses or deaths from sepsis fail to say the word. They often say that the person has died of complications of pneumonia, surgery, or cancer, for example. If someone has died of an infection, such as pneumonia or the flu, or an infection from surgery, he or she has died from sepsis. If someone develops an infection serious enough that they must be treated in the hospital with IV fluids and antibiotics, chances are that they have sepsis.

Below is a list of celebrities who Sepsis Alliance knows have had sepsis or believes they did due to the news reports. If you know of any celebrities that you feel should be added to this list, please send the information to info@sepsis.org.

Suggested Citation:
Sepsis Alliance. Sepsis and Celebrities. 2024. https://www.sepsis.org/sepsisand/celebrities/

Updated January 21, 2024.

 

Likely Sepsis Cases By Illness:

Bacterial Infection
  • Ashley Park, actress – treated for tonsillitis that progressed to sepsis
Cancer
  • Paul Allen, Co-Founder of Microsoft – died
  • Ron Piche, former Montreal Expo pitcher – died of “cancer and blood poisoning” in 2011 (baseball)
  • Ray Price (Country star Ray Price back in hospital with sepsis) – died
  • Charlie Robinson, actor – died
  • Lura Lynn Ryan, Illinois former first lady – survived first bout with sepsis, later died of “complications from cancer”
  • Susie Steiner, author – died
  • Cory Wells, musician – died
  • John Wetton, musician – died
Cellulitis
COVID-19
Dental Infection
Diabetes
E coli
HIV
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)
Infected Wound
Influenza
Intestinal Infection or Perforated Bowel
Maternal Sepsis
Meningitis
Other
Pancreatitis
Peritonitis
Pneumonia
Surgery
Toxic Shock Syndrome
Unknown
Upper Respiratory Infection
UTI

Related Resources

Jan Nowak

On 12th August 2022 I lost conciousness and became unresponsive. I was home alone for the holidays so no one could respond quickly. On 14th of August a friend found me in critical condition and called for help. I was brought to a local ICU and subsequently transferred 3 times. I was in severe MODS because of septic shock. (Sepsis and Septic Shock) All of my key organs were disfunctional and I had meningitis of unknown origins. (Sepsis and Meningitis) After a month spent in a coma and another conscious in the ICU, I made near complete recovery. Months of ... Read Full Story

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Jacqueline Mayes-Pehl

I had what I thought was the flu for 3 weeks. During the day I felt fine but at night it was bad. One night I took my temperature and it was 104°F but apparently I didn’t want to bother anyone so I went to sleep. The next day, I now recall taking a UTI test at home (I didn’t remember this until I was healed) and it immediately said positive without having to wait. I did nothing. (Sepsis and Urinary Tract Infections) When my husband came home from work he said I had told him to go to the ... Read Full Story

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Patti Smith

I was well one day and next very sick. I am still amazed at how fast it all happened. I woke up one Sunday in late June of this year feeling so violently sick. I had strong chills, so strong I thought I may break a tooth, then fever, then vomiting. I thought I had a bad flu. But when I couldn’t seem to pronounce words and my husband couldn’t understand what I was saying I got a strong gut feeling that something was VERY wrong. My husband took me to the ER. After being told I probably have the ... Read Full Story

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McKennah C.

On January 1 of 2023 I went into the hospital to deliver my baby. The next day I had my healthy baby boy and a pretty easy birth. Nearly 12 hours later after feeling fine and normal healing after birth I started getting the shivers which I thought was pretty normal since I just gave birth and thought that it was supposed to be a dreadful healing process. (Sepsis and Pregnancy & Childbirth) I remember bringing it up to my nurse but it was shaken off for a couple hours. Later that night the nurse came in to see how ... Read Full Story

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Raygan Stone

My husband and I decided we no longer wanted any more children. I went in on a Friday for a simple tubal and was released that evening with no issues. I felt great and had a great weekend with my family. Early Monday morning, I was shivering and my temperature was at 103 degrees. (Sepsis and Surgery) By noon, my husband rushed me to the ER and they immediately took me in and found me a room. I was pumped with fluids and antibiotics while they tried to figure out what was wrong. I was shaking uncontrollably to the point ... Read Full Story

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Other Topics

Celebrities

Many celebrities and public figures have been affected by sepsis. Some survived their bout with the disease, but others died. Sepsis is an equal opportunity illness – it can affect anyone of any social status, age, ethnicity, or beliefs.