What was Hayden Panettiere’s brother’s cause of death? Inside the tragic story of her graffiti-artist younger sibling Jansen

Hayden Panettiere has opened up about her brother Jansen’s February 2023 death at the age of 28 from an undiagnosed heart condition for the first time.

The actress and singer, 35, told People Wednesday, ‘He was my only sibling, and it was my job to protect him. When I lost him, I felt like I lost half of my soul.’

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) coupled with aortic valve complications.’

The New York-born entertainer said that she dealt with agoraphobia in the wake of the high-profile family tragedy.

The Heroes actress said she put on weight – ‘I just ballooned out,’ she told the outlet – amid a spike in ‘stress and cortisol’ levels as she dealt with the tragic event.

Hayden Panettiere, 35, has opened up about her brother Jansen’s February 2023 death at the age of 28 from an undiagnosed heart condition for the first time. Pictured in LA in 2022 

‘I didn’t feel confident to put on clothes and get out of the house, but I also knew that I needed to get out and keep moving or I’d never stop looking and feeling this way,’ Panettiere said. 

She added, ‘It became a destructive hamster wheel of, do I feel good enough to go out?’

The Nashville star said she has gained a measure of wisdom in the wake of the tragic events.

‘When something that massive has happened to you, you really learn to pick your fights and just not let the little things upset you,’ Panettiere said. ‘Because once something so horrific, so deep, so catastrophic happens in your life, there’s not much that can really rock you.’

The Heroes actress was pictured with her late sibling in January 2019 in LA 

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) coupled with aortic valve complications.’ Jansen seen in LA in 2015

Panettiere said her brother’s passing is something she ‘will never be able to get over.’

She added, ‘I will always be heartbroken about it. I will never be able to get over it. No matter how many years go by, I will never get over his loss.’

Panettiere appears in the upcoming movie Amber Alert, which is due in theaters September 27.