Reflecting On Every Cast Member From 'My 600-lb Life' Who Has Passed Away

Anyone who has ever watched the TLC show My 600-lb Life knows that the show's message is really a warning - food addiction can and will eventually kill someone. It's inspirational to watch the success stories and we like to talk about the people who arrive in Houston, Texas to receive the help of Dr. Younan Nowzaradan, but it's also sad to watch people fail. Unfortunately, since the show began, 10 lives have ended due to their battle.

With this, we'll examine those who have publicly lost their lives battling food addiction and obesity. Whether they passed while filming the show or afterwards, the sadness surrounding their situations remains and it's the most unfortunate outcome that can happen.

Trigger warning: this article features mentions of suicide, sexual abuse, and domestic violence

Lisa Fleming

Lisa is one of three cast members from season 6 who have passed away since filming wrapped. She is well known by viewers due to the grotesque state of her physical appearance, including living maggots on her skin. She traveled to Texas to work with Dr. Now and successfully lost over 200-lb after her surgery.

Unfortunately for Lisa, she was unable to fully recover and passed away in 2018 at the age of 50. Her daughter confirmed on social media that her passing was due to various illnesses.

Destinee LaShaee

Destinee was the first openly transgender cast member to appear on the show, and she was known and well-liked among viewers. She was also one of the biggest success stories, losing a total of over 500-lb since appearing on the show. She was always vocal on social media about the importance of mental health care and was looking like she was close to achieving her goal of fully transitioning.

Unfortunately, Destinee (who also went by Matthew Ventress) passed away in 2022 at the age of 30. No official cause of death was given, but it's been suspected by fans that LaShaee died by suicide.

Robert Buchel

Robert's journey began as he traveled from New Jersey to Texas to work with Dr. Now on weight loss. Arriving at almost 900-lb, he worked with the doctor to lose over 300-lb and start removing his lymphodema masses on the sides of his abdomen. However, Robert's struggle extended past his weight and it was revealed that he was severely addicted to opioid painkillers.

Robert's addiction stunted his progress and he began trying to meet goals just to qualify for surgery. He knew that surgery came with painkillers, and when he was shut down he began refusing physical therapy and weight loss treatment. He was the first cast member to pass away while filming, as he suffered a fatal heart attack at the age of 41.

Gina Krasley

Gina was one she show's most controversial cast members to appear in recent seasons. After refusing to bathe for weeks on end and verbally abusing her wife and family members, she relocated to Texas for Dr. Now's weight loss program. She struggled to lose the required weight and lost just 50-lb before she and her wife decided to go back to New Jersey. Upon returning home, she shared on social media that she'd supposedly lost over 300-lb.

In April 2021, she shared from her hospital room that she had been struggling with mobility and was being treated for an infection and eating disorder. Sadly, Gina passed away just three months later at the age of 30.

Coliesa McMillian

The show featured Coliesa's journey with weight loss and therapy to recover enough to qualify for weight loss surgery. After meeting her goal and receiving a gastric sleeve, she stated she was feeling the best she'd ever felt.

Unfortunately, Coliesa passed away in 2020 at the age of 41. The cause of death ultimately was natural causes from complications of weight loss surgery.

Henry Foots

Henry was just the second person to ever appear on My 600-lb Life when he showed up at Dr. Now's office to shed weight for his high school reunion. He initially weighed in at over 700-lb and with the help of the doctor and his program, Henry was able to meet his target of 275-lb and qualified for skin removal surgery. Henry even died on the table during surgery, but was successfully revived.

After being able to start working again as a shuttle bus driver, Henry unfortunately had a medical episode in 2013 while behind the wheel. He lost consciousness and killed a woman who was standing on the street corner. Just after the accident, it was confirmed that Henry had passed away at the age of 54.

James King

James appeared on the show back in 2017 and weighed in at over 800-lb when he arrived in Texas via medical transport. He was ultimately kicked out of Dr. Now's program for continuing to gain weight and lie about his eating habits. The doctor even called Adult Protective Services on James' wife, Lisa, for spousal abuse. After being removed from the program, it appeared that James relocated from Texas to Tennessee with his wife.

Regrettably, James passed away in 2020 at the age of 49 due to complications of liver and kidney failure. He is survived by his wife, Lisa, six children, and 19 grandchildren.

Kelly Mason

Kelly was perhaps the most emotional cast members to ever appear on the show. After coming to Texas to work with Dr. Now, she worked hard to lose weight and appeared to have a good rapport with the doctor. She stayed committed to the program and seemed dedicated to meeting her goal.

After nine months of filming, Kelly sadly passed away from a heart attack at the age of 41. Dr. Now referred to Kelly as an inspiration and expressed his sadness of her passing while filming the show.

Sean Milliken

Sean's time on the show was very rocky and he suffered a lot of tragedy while trying to reach his weight loss goal. After he arrived in Texas, his weight peaked at just over 1000-lb and Dr. Now suspected that his relationship with his mother, Renee, was potentially a Munchausen syndrome by proxy situation after she consistently overfed him whenever he was in her care and insisted he was sick with illnesses that didn't exist.

After achieving enough loss to qualify for gastric sleeve and losing over 400-lb, Sean's mother unexpectedly passed away in 2017. He struggled to maintain his progress in the wake of her death and after his apartment was destroyed during Hurricane Harvey. Along with struggling to maintain his weight loss, Sean also had difficulties maintaining personal hygiene standards and kept contracting infections. Sean's journey sadly came to an end in 2019 when he passed away at the age of 29. Dr. Now ruled the cause of death due to complications of an infection.

James "LB" Bonner

James, otherwise known as LB, was featured on season 6 of the show and is regrettably one of the three cast members from that season whose life ended early. LB was very popular with viewers for his consistent optimism and overall nice guy attitude. When he started his journey, he weighed in at 650-lb but was determined to follow Dr. Now's program. LB worked to lose more than half of his body weight and appeared to be on his way to becoming a success story.

Shortly after appearing on the show, LB shared on social media that he struggled with mental health and wanted to face his demons to take control of his depression. His life sadly ended just one week after Lisa Fleming's in 2018 when he passed away by suicide at the age of 30.

If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.

If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, call the National Eating Disorders Association Helpline at 1-800-931-2237.