David Soul Cause of Death: What We Know

Hollywood is mourning the loss of American-British actor and singer David Soul. The actor, known for starring opposite Paul Michael Glaser’s Starsky as Detective Kenneth “Hutch” Hutchinson in Starsky & Hutch, passed away Thursday at the age of 80. Although Soul’s cause of death is not known, with his wife, Helen Snell, only sharing that he died “after a valiant battle for life,” Soul battled numerous health issues in his later years of life.

Over the course of the past few years, Soul underwent numerous surgeries, including decompression surgery on his spine and the implantation of prosthetic discs in his neck, according to the Daily Mail. Speaking to the Daily Express in 2009, Soul revealed he had been suffering from crippling back pain for more than three decades, an issue made worse by his stunt work.

“I think a lot of the action stuff that I’ve done in films over the years probably hasn’t helped the situation very much,” he told the outlet. “Thankfully it’s never kept me from working. I’ve worked through the pain. You have to learn to live with pain. There’s a threshold and you can live within that threshold. I’m in pain now, every day of my life I’m in pain. But somehow I can get through it.”

In addition to back pain, Soul suffered nerve damage that led to arm paralysis and prevented him from playing the guitar. He also previously battled lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) before undergoing surgery to remove a tumor from his left lung. In 2017, Soul spent 10 weeks in the ICU experiencing a critical health crisis after he underwent hip replacement surgery. Soul was transferred to end-of-life care, with doctors initially believing that he would not make it. Soul later shared that during his hospitalization, he was put on a ventilator twice and underwent a tracheostomy. He added, “I couldn’t walk, I couldn’t do anything, I was in delirium.” After undergoing life-saving treatments at the Royal Free Hospital, Soul overcame the odds against him and survived.

Throughout his health struggles, Soul credited his wife for helping him through, previously sharing, “I am a fighter, and I did fight my way through this thing. There is no question about it, but without Helen, I never would have made it. She’s magnificent.”

In a statement shared with publications Friday, Snell confirmed that “Soul – beloved husband, father, grandfather and brother – died yesterday after a valiant battle for life in the loving company of family.” She said her husband “shared many extraordinary gifts in the world as actor, singer, storyteller, creative artist and dear friend. His smile, laughter and passion for life will be remembered by the many whose lives he has touched.”