Real-life Fault in Our Stars husband dies at 25

Katie and Dalton Prager met online when they were both 18

Dalton Prager, the husband from the real-life "Fault in Our Stars" couple, died Saturday afternoon at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis at the age of 25, his parents told CNN.

"Dalton fought a long hard battle with cystic fibrosis," Katie posted on Facebook. "He was a courageous fighter and 'give up' wasn't in his vocabulary." Dalton had been in the intensive care unit on a ventilator for about two weeks before he died.



PHOTO: CNN

Katie, who has cystic fibrosis, was in hospice in Flemingsburg, Kentucky, when her husband passed away. According to Katie’s mother, the couple FaceTimed as Dalton was dying. "She told him that she loved him," Donovan said. "We don't know if he heard her."

"He was one of the greatest people I'd ever met and not many people like Dalton come around so you got to get him while you can," said 26-year-old, Katie. Katie and Dalton met online when they were both 18. However, since Dalton had Burkholderia cepacia, a highly contagious infection for people with cystic fibrosis, Katie was aware that meeting him in person was risky. But Katie still asked Dalton to visit her in Kentucky.

PHOTO: CNN

The day before Dalton died, Katie told CNN she had no regrets about their decision to meet in person. “It gave me some of the best years of my life," she said. "I'd rather have five years of being in love and just really completely happy than 20 years of not having anybody."



Two years later, at the age of 20, in 2011, Dalton and Katie married. Katie did contract Burkholderia cepacia, and the husband and wife waited for transplants at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Dalton had his in November 17, 2014 and it was a success. Katie got her transplant in July, 2015 after a long fight with Medicare, Medicaid and her hospital.

But, Dalton later developed lymphoma. He overcame the cancer, but was then hospitalised with pneumonia and a viral infection. Katie's transplant never worked well. She was in and out of the hospital, and earlier this month doctors told her there was nothing more they could do.

PHOTO: CNN



Last week, the family hoped to have a medical transport company fly Dalton from Missouri to a hospital in Kentucky. They wanted him to recover there, and then drive to their home, where Katie is receiving hospice care. But Dalton was never healthy enough to fly to Kentucky.

Katie and Dalton last saw each other on July 16 - their fifth wedding anniversary. Dalton's funeral will be held on Wednesday in Missouri, where his family lives. A GoFundMe page has been set up to cover Dalton's remaining medical bills and funeral expenses.

This article originally appeared on CNN.