Beloved actor Catherine O’Hara lived with an unusual condition prior to her death on January 30.
O’Hara, who became a fan favorite through iconic roles in Home Alone, Beetlejuice, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Schitt’s Creek, and many other productions, reportedly died at her home in Los Angeles last week at age 71.
The actor had previously spoken about being diagnosed with a rare medical condition as an adult — one believed to affect only about 1 in 10,000 people.
Dextrocardia is described by the Cleveland Clinic as a rare congenital heart defect in which the heart sits on the right side of the chest instead of the left. Because of its unusual nature, many people with the condition discover it only by accident, if at all.
There are reportedly several different types of dextrocardia, including one in which the heart sits slightly closer to the center of the chest, potentially increasing the risk of cardiac issues.
Another form, dextrocardia situs inversus totalis, occurs when a person’s internal organs are mirrored inside the body but otherwise function normally. Speaking in 2021, O’Hara revealed she didn’t know she had the condition until undergoing a series of tests — including an EKG and a chest X‑ray for tuberculosis — as part of medical requirements for her son to attend nursing school.
“When the doctor told us that my heart was on the right side and my organs were flipped, my husband immediately said, ‘No, her head’s on backwards,’” O’Hara joked at the time.
Dextrocardia doesn’t cause specific symptoms, but there are potential complications that make it important for individuals to know they have it.
This makes sense when considering how having organs on the “wrong” side of the body can complicate diagnosis. Doctors are trained to look for pain or symptoms in certain areas — for example, a classic warning sign of a heart attack is pain on the left side of the chest. With dextrocardia, this would appear on the right side, meaning a doctor might not immediately suspect a cardiac event because the symptoms present in an unexpected location.
Though the condition is extremely rare, O’Hara reportedly wasn’t the only celebrity living with it. Donny Osmond, 68, and Spanish singer Enrique Iglesias, 50, are also said to have dextrocardia, and the condition is believed to be more common in men.
At the time of writing, Catherine O’Hara’s cause of death remains unknown.
Rest in peace, Catherine, and thank you for the many memories.
