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. 2025. https://www.sepsis.org/sepsisand/celebrities/

Updated September 8, 2025.

Likely Sepsis Cases By Illness:

Bacterial Infection

Ronnie Coleman – pro body builder, “blood infection”
Ashley Park, actress – treated for tonsillitis that progressed to sepsis
Donald Norcross, U.S. Congressman – treated for a gallbladder infection that progressed to sepsis

To learn more about bacterial infections and how they can cause sepsis, visit Sepsis and Bacterial Infections.

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

To learn more about how people with cancer can be at higher risk of contracting infections and developing sepsis, visit Sepsis and Cancer.

Cellulitis

Jon Huntsman, philanthropist – died
Rusty Staub, baseball player – died

To learn more about what cellulitis is and its connection to sepsis, visit Sepsis and Cellulitis.

COVID-19

Nick Cordero, actor – died
Larry King, TV personality – died
Cloris Leachman, actor – died of stroke, but coroner said COVID-19 was “significant condition”
Pranab Mukherjee, former president of India – died

To learn how COVID-19 can lead to sepsis, visit Sepsis and COVID-19.

Dental Infection

Mike Williams, former NFL player – died

To learn how infections in your mouth can lead to sepsis, visit Sepsis and Dental Health.

Diabetes

Paul Jackson, bassist with Herbie Hancock – died

To learn about how diabetes increases your risk of developing infections that can lead to sepsis, visit Sepsis and Diabetes.

E coli

Hugh Hefner – died
Lily Rose Depp, daughter of Johnny Depp

To learn more about intestinal E. coli and how it can lead to sepsis, visit Sepsis and Intestinal E Coli Infections.

HIV

Fred Hersch, Jazz pianist and composer

Learn more about HIV and how it can increase your risk of developing sepsis at Sepsis and HIV/AIDS.

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)

Tyler James Williams, actor (Crohn’s disease)

Learn more about how IBD can increase your risk of developing infections that can lead to sepsis at Sepsis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).

Infected Wound

Casey Kasem, radio personality, voice over actor – died
Christopher Reeve, actor – died of anaphylactic shock
E-Dubble (Evan Sewell Wallace), rapper – died
Mother Theresa, infected pacemaker line, survived but died years later of other causes
Chris Young, singer
Calvin Coolidge Jr., President Calvin Coolidge’s youngest son, infected blister – died

Learn more about bacterial infections at Sepsis and Bacterial Infections.

Influenza

Quintana Roo Dunne, daughter of author Joan Didion – died
Ken Flach, professional tennis player – died
Mary Louise Parker, actor

Learn how the flu can cause sepsis at Sepsis and Influenza.

Intestinal Infection or Perforated Bowel

Socrates, Brazilian soccer player (captain) – died
Patty Duke, actor – died

Learn how a perforated bowel can lead to infection and sepsis at Sepsis and Perforated Bowel.

Maternal Sepsis

Lily Allen, British singer
Kathryn Fiore, UK actress
Rebecca Adlington, UK Olympic swimmer

Learn about how pregnancy, delivery, and post-partum infections can cause sepsis at Sepsis and Pregnancy & Delivery.

Meningitis

Amy Purdy, actress and athlete

Learn how bacterial, viral, and fungal meningitis can cause sepsis at Sepsis and Meningitis.

Necrotizing fasciitis

Lynn Collins, actress – also had pneumonia

Other

Stephen Colbert, TV talk host, “blood poisoning” after burst appendix
Paul Di’Anno, singer
J. Charles Jones, civil rights activist – died
Eli Leon, psychologist, scholar – died
Kyle Lowry, basketball player
Eddie Money, musician (Barrett’s esophagus)
Fernando Valenzuela, former pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers – died
Heather O’Rourke, actress – died
Ignaz Semmelweis, physician who pioneered infection control to reduce postpartum sepsis deaths
Jessye Norman, opera singer – died (following a spinal cord injury)
John McCutcheon, singer (lung infection)
Denis O’Brien, film maker – died
Mel Tillis, singer – died
Robert Trebor, actor – died
Marcus “Kutfather” Tufono, DJ – died
Rudolf Valentino, actor – died

Pancreatitis

Robby Steinhart, musician with the band Kansas – died

Peritonitis

Harry Houdini, magician – died

Pneumonia

Marty Allen, comedian – died (reported as pneumonia)
Christian Brando – died
Chuck Brown, singer – died
Fast Eddie Clarke, musician – died
Lynn Collins, actor, also had necrotizing fasciitis
Jeff Conaway, actor – died
Nicole DeHuff, actor – died
R Lee Ermey, actor – died
Ken Flach, professional tennis player – died
Whoopie Goldberg, TV personality
Corey Haim, actor – died
Angelica Hale, singer
Jim Henson, creator of the Muppets – died
Trish Keenan, singer -died
Bernie Mac, actor – died
George Michael, singer
Steve McMichael, former NFL player
Rudy Moreno, comedian – died
Prince Ranier of Monaco, “chest infection” – died
Leslie Nielson, actor – died
William L. O’Neill, historian and author – died
Kim Porter, actress, model – died
Wayne Rogers, actor – died (reported as “complications of pneumonia”)
Lawrence Welk, musician – died

Learn how pneumonia can lead to sepsis at Sepsis and Pneumonia.

Surgery

Bobby Darin, singer – died
Danielle Campo McLeod, paralympic gold medalist
Jamie-Lynn Sigler – actor

Learn how surgery can cause infections, during and after the procedure, that can lead to sepsis at Sepsis and Surgery.

Toxic Shock Syndrome

Audrey Leishman, wife of pro golfer Marc Leishman
Alex Smith, professional football player

Learn how toxic shock syndrome can lead to sepsis at Sepsis and Toxic Shock Syndrome.

Unknown

Neil Adams, creator of Batman and the X-Men – died
Muhammad Ali, boxer – died
Joshua Bassett – actor
David H.K. Bell, actor– died
Billy Porter, actor
DuShon Monique Brown, actress – died
George H.W. Bush, former President of the United States
Dennis Caplinger, musician – died
Christopher Cazanove, actor – died
Steve Curry, actor – died
Brian Dennehy, actor – died
Robert L. Drew, Filmmaker and journalist – died
George Genovese, baseball scout – died
Elizabeth Irving, mother to athlete Kyrie Irving – died
Kenny Jönsson, NHL player
Paul Kantner, singer
Larry King, talk show host
Jonathan Koch, film producer
Steve Mackay, musician (the Stooges) – died
Rita McNeil, Canadian singer, possible: “from complications of surgery after a recurrent infection” – died
Burt Metcalfe, TV producer – died
Steven Rumbelow, writer and director – died
Charles L. Schulze, economist – died
David Sherwin, screenwriter – died
Grace Slick, singer, septic shock
Anne Love Smith, mother of actress Julianne Moore – died
Anna Nicole Smith, model – died
Dan Snyder, National Hockey League player – died
Yolanda Sonnabend, theater designer and painter – died
Dave Thomas, comedian
John Vinocur, foreign correspondent, reporter, and editor – died
Deborah Donnelly Wahlberg, sister of actor Mark Wahlberg – died
Dean Winters, actor (bacterial infection)
lke Wyludda, German Olympian
Jay Youngblood (Steven Nicky Romero), professional wrestler -died

Upper Respiratory Infection

Robbie Coltrane, actor – died

UTI

Erin Bates, reality TV star
William (Bill) J. Clinton, former President of the United States, due to E. coli
Etta James, singer – died
Pope John-Paul II – died
Tanya Roberts, actress – died
Brian Wilson, singer (Beach Boys) – died

Learn how the common UTI can lead to sepsis at Sepsis and Urinary Tract Infections.

Related Resources

Lauren Gilliland

My story is very long and complicated but to keep it as simple as possible, for about two weeks I was in and out of doctor’s offices and the ER for a chronic severe sore throat. At first I thought it was strep or mono however it continued to get worse. New symptoms would pop up such as a swollen vein on my neck and a piercing chest pain in my lungs. Doctors could not figure out what was wrong with me. After being told again and again I just had a “strange virus”, on October 18th 2023 I went ... Read Full Story

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Elly V.

I had just given birth to our perfect and precious son. I had a wonderful birth and was so happy to finally meet our little blessing and begin the journey of parenthood with my husband. I remember in preparation to leave the hospital I did not feel well. I noticed I kept needing to walk hunched over because of some pain I was having. As a woman who had just experienced childbirth for the first time, I had no idea what feelings were normal or abnormal. I kept telling myself that women give birth all the time – this must ... Read Full Story

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Frank B.

This is my story. I am 64 years old. My encounter with septic shock took place in June 2023. I was driving a tractor trailer in an Over the Road capacity working towards a client in East Peoria, IL. What led to my stay in the ICU of a hospital in Urbana IL was a kidney stone roughly 1 cm in diameter dropping out of my kidney and blocking the passageway (ureter) to the bladder. (Sepsis and Kidney Stones) Urine backed up leading to the sepsis condition. My recollection of my condition constituted a diminished capacity to safely operate the ... Read Full Story

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Petra Haans

I didn’t feel good for a long time. I went to the hospital three times but they didn’t take me seriously and sent me away. I had so much pain! Because they didn’t took me seriously, I started to doubt myself. But there was so much stress and pain. Not so many days later the ambulance came and took me to the hospital, they let me be more and more sick, threw up blood. I was in a coma already. Where the doctors let me threw up blood for two days before they started to do medical research on me. Because of all this stress, ... Read Full Story

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Courtney H.

Last year I had an induction to go into labour for my first pregnancy, I gave birth and then got sent to the ward. I had to stay at the ward myself as my partner went home. It was about 11pm at night where I started feeling like I had the flu. I felt so unwell and dehydrated, during this time my newborn baby was crying all night and I didn’t get any sleep until 8am. When I woke up about 10am I told the nurse I had a temperature, I remember dripping of sweat uncontrollably and shaking. (Sepsis and ... Read Full Story

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Sepsis and Celebrities

Likely Sepsis Cases By Illness:

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