What was Hayden Panettiere’s brother’s cause of death? Inside the tragic story of her graffiti-artist younger sibling Jansen
Hayden Panettiere has spoken candidly for the first time about the death of her brother Jansen at age 28 in February 2023 from an undiagnosed heart condition.
The 35-year-old actress and singer said People Wednesday, “He was my only sibling, and it was my job to protect him. When I lost him, it felt like I lost half my soul.”
When Jansen died, Panettiere’s parents Lesley Vogul and Skip Panettiere said in a statement that his “sudden death was the result of cardiomegaly (enlarged heart) combined with aortic valve complications.”
The New York-born entertainer said she suffered from agoraphobia after the devastating family tragedy.
The Heroes actress said she gained weight — “I just lost it,” she told the outlet — as her “stress and cortisol levels” increased as she dealt with the tragic event.
Hayden Panettiere, 35, has spoken openly for the first time about the death of her brother Jansen in February 2023 at age 28 from an undiagnosed heart condition. Pictured in LA in 2022
“I was afraid to put on clothes and leave the house, but I also knew I had to get out and keep moving or I would continue to look and feel like this forever,” Panettiere said.
She added: ‘It became a destructive hamster wheel of: Am I feeling well enough to go out?’
The Nashville star said the tragic events have left her a lot wiser.
“When something so big happens to you, you really learn to pick your battles and not let the little things get you down,” Panettiere said. “Because when something so terrible, so profound, so catastrophic happens in your life, there’s not much that can really affect you.”
The Heroes actress was photographed in LA with her late sibling in January 2019
At the time of Jansen’s death, Panettiere’s parents Lesley Vogul and Skip Panettiere said in a statement that his “sudden passing was due to cardiomegaly (enlarged heart) combined with aortic valve complications.” Jansen seen in LA in 2015
Panettiere said she will “never be able to get over” her brother’s death.
She added: “I will always be devastated. I will never get over it. No matter how many years go by, I will never get over losing him.”
Panettiere stars in the upcoming film Amber Alert, due in theaters September 27.