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BREAKING: Erin Moran's Likely Cause of Death Revealed

Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images

From Country Living

Erin Moran's probable cause of death has been revealed. The former child star and Happy Days alumna, who was found dead on Saturday (April 22) at the age of 56, likely died of complications from advanced cancer, according to a joint statement from the sheriff and coroner for Harrison County, Indiana.

"A joint investigation into Mrs Moran's death was conducted by the Harrison County Sheriff's Department and the Harrison County Coroner's Office. A subsequent autopsy revealed that Mrs Moran likely succumbed to complications of stage 4 cancer," reads the statement, obtained by WDRB News reporter Chris Turner. Though the toxicology results are pending, the statement also confirms no illegal drugs were found at Moran's residence.

Since the news broke yesterday, Moran's fellow former child stars have spoken out about her death. Paul Petersen, who was a child star on The Donna Reed Show and founded the child-actor advocacy group A Minor Consideration, suggested that Moran had distanced herself from her California-based support system.

"She was so far away in Indiana," Petersen wrote in a Facebook post yesterday, per Deadline. "The help she ran from was right here, as close as a call. Those of us who knew her pain and remember it so well must tonight rededicate ourselves to the task of making sure that none of our brethren pass away unremarked or feel unloved."

In a later post, Petersen said that he was "proud of our efforts over the years to help Erin Moran, whose troubles were many and complex... Erin had friends and she knew it. Abandonment was not the issue... We did our best with the resources available to us, but it was a very dark room. Some don't find the light switch in time."

According to neighbors, Moran had been living with her second husband and mother-in-law in a quiet trailer park in New Salisbury, Indiana, when she died. "I used to see her all the time, walking up to get the mail or just out for a stroll," neighbor David Holt, 61, told People. "She always waved or stopped to say hello. But I hadn't seen her for a couple of months. She kind of hibernated at the end. It's so sad. She was a good person."

Meanwhile, several of Moran's Happy Days co-stars paid tribute to her life, including Henry Winkler and Scott Baio.

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