IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

'Hamilton' star's 3-year-old daughter dies from severe form of epilepsy

The daughter of Miguel Cervantes died from a severe epilepsy condition that was first diagnosed when she was 7 months old.
/ Source: TODAY

"Hamilton" star Miguel Cervantes and his wife, Kelly, have had their "hearts shattered" by the loss of their 3-year-old daughter, who died over the weekend from a severe form of epilepsy that was first diagnosed when she was just 7 months old.

Kelly Cervantes posted a heartbreaking photo of an empty bed on Twitter Sunday in announcing the news that their daughter, Adelaide, had passed away a few weeks after being moved into hospice care.

"The machines are off. Her bed is empty. The quiet is deafening,'' she wrote. "Adelaide left us early Saturday. She went peacefully in my arms, surrounded by love. Finally, she is free from pain + seizures but leaves our hearts shattered. We love you so much Adelaideybug and forever after.''

Kelly and Miguel, who stars in the Chicago production of the hit Broadway musical, have worked to raise awareness and funding for epilepsy research through the nonprofit Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy since Adelaide was first diagnosed.

Kelly detailed Adelaide's treatment on her blog, including a post on Oct. 4 indicating that she had entered hospice care due to her deteriorating condition.

Adelaide was suffering from a "neuro-degenerative" condition with no cure that caused her brain to deteriorate, Kelly wrote on her blog last month.

"The word that has haunted us from our earliest days on this journey, our worst nightmare, has come true,'' she wrote. "We’ve watched as she’s lost the ability to suck her thumb, as she’s drifted more distantly from us month after month, and now this."

The diagnosis caused the couple to change their goals from improving Adelaide's health to making her as comfortable as possible in the final weeks of her life.

Miguel Cervantes wrote about that difficult moment while sharing his wife's blog post.

"My wife and I have been happy to share our story of love & pain & struggle over the past few years as we have fought for & with our baby girl to try to make a difference,'' he wrote on Twitter. "Sometimes even the hardest love & the strongest fight isn't enough."

Kelly also wrote an emotional letter to Adelaide in the blog post in which she detailed her degenerative condition.

"I promise you, my angel baby, that your efforts, your fight, your life will not have been in vain,'' she wrote. "We will take the eternal lessons you taught us and continue to plant your seeds in the hearts of anyone who will listen."

CORRECTION (October 14, 2019, 9:48 a.m.): An earlier version of this article stated that Adelaide was 4 years old.