Darius Danesh had been "living with a broken neck" and an undiagnosed heart condition when he died.
Darius Danesh had been suffering from a heart condition he didn't even know he had when he died
The former 'Pop Idol' content passed away at the age of 41 in August 2022 after inhaling chloroethane - also known as ethyl chloride - at his Minnesota apartment and now his grieving girlfriend Lauren Cheek, 30, has explained that an autopsy revealed that his heart was "twice the size" it should have been and that she believes he used the recreational anaesthetic to alleviate the pain caused by a broken neck he had been suffering from.
She told The Sun on Sunday newspaper: "Darius was living with this heart condition that he didn’t know he had. So many things could have taken him, but this one thing did, and he died in his sleep. His mum told me they only found out after they did the autopsy. His heart was twice the size it was supposed to be, which was fitting, because that is genuinely how he was — he had so much love. The autopsy also found he was living with a broken neck, but he refused to get help or complain about it. I think he used (chloroethane) because he was in so much pain and he didn’t want to take pills, not even aspirin. That’s what killed him — the substance mixed with his heart and he couldn’t take it."
Lauren went on to add that Darius - who shot to fame when he gave a memorable rendition of Britney Spears' hit '...Baby One More Time' on the ITV talent show 'Popstars' before releasing a string of hit singles and eventually going on to star in the West End - had sustained his injuries whilst racing with Hollywood actor Gerard Butler and always "refused" when she urged him to see a doctor.
She added: "He was with Gerry (Butler) in Monaco for the Grand Prix and they slammed into a wall during a race with the Prince of Monaco.m I don’t think it ever fully healed and then he rebroke it because he got hit by a car in London a year or two before he died when he was riding a bike.
"And then he got into a car accident with his dad in Scotland. D was in the passenger seat, his dad was driving and someone drove into them.
"He was always in pain and I would beg him to see the doctor, but he refused. He was trying to find a natural remedy.”
Lauren also revealed that the last time she spoke to her tragic partner was the night before his death and knew that he was "tired and run down" and recalled telling him to "hang in there" for just a few more days until she could get to him.
She said: "The last time I talked to him was the night before he died.
“He was tired and run down and I could tell he was in so much pain. I told him, ‘I’m flying out on Sunday, it’s only a few more days, just hang in there’.
“We had agreed to go to Scotland for his birthday the following week so he could relax and recharge.
“But the next day I couldn’t reach him.
“I texted his mum Avril on the Saturday and said, ‘Hey, I’m sure D just lost his phone, but have you heard from him because he’s not messaging me back?’
“I could see on WhatsApp that the last time he saw his phone was on Wednesday. His phone was going straight to voicemail.
“I started freaking out and I got a call from his mum on Monday morning.
“She told me she had just found out the previous day. I couldn’t believe it was real. Darius was going to do the' Pop Idol' reunion, but his real purpose and intention was to promote this project called Awe, which was about providing clean water, air and energy for everyone on the planet. That was his life’s goal."
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