Tanya Roberts’ Cause of Death Revealed

Tanya Roberts died of a urinary tract infection, her representatives finally clarified on Tuesday. The reps gave the information to PEOPLE after a confusing few days of misunderstandings and faulty reports. The 65-year-old actress reportedly had a UTI that advanced to her organs and her bloodstream, in combination with her history of hepatitis C.

Roberts’ death has been confusing over the last two weeks as conflicting reports emerged. However, her publicist Mike Pingel finally clarified the sad news on Tuesday morning, giving the full details to reporters. he said: “With a heavy heart I can confirm the death of Tanya Roberts last night on January 4, 2021 around 9:30pm PT at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA.” He added that her cause of death “was from a urinary tract infection which spread to her kidney, gallbladder, liver and then blood stream.”

Roberts reportedly fell out of bed and could not get up on Thursday, Dec. 24, and was hospitalized with intestinal pain and difficulty breathing. These symptoms advanced in the days that followed, and on Sunday, Jan. 3, Roberts’ partner Lance O’Brien, told her manager that he had “said goodbye” to her during his most recent hospital visit.

This was misinterpreted to mean that Roberts had already passed away, but the news soon broke that she was still alive. However, O’Brien explained that he had been warned that this would be an “end-of-life visit,” and that his access to Roberts would be restricted due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The medical staff at Cedars-Sinai Hospital confirmed that Roberts’ true time of death was on Monday night. Many fans were horrified by the idea of Roberts seeing the world mourn her before she had truly passed away, leading to widespread sympathy on social media.

Some also grew suspicious of the whole situation, questioning O’Brien’s behavior in an Inside Edition interview where he seemed to learn that Roberts was still alive in real-time. O’Brien later told TMZ that he believed Roberts had passed when he last left the hospital, as the light in her eyes “faded.”

Roberts is survived by O’Brien and one sister, Barbara Chase. Pingel asked fans to consider mourning her by making a donation to the ASPCA.

“Roberts was an animal rights activist in lieu of flowers, they are asking for donations to be given in Roberts name to the ASPCA, https://secure.aspca.org,” Pingel said. “An online memorial for Tanya Roberts will be announced shortly. The family ask for privacy as they mourn her death.”