The Scary Medical Issue That Chad Michael Murray Nearly Died From

Although actor Chad Michael Murray is known for his roles in hit teen television shows of the early 2000s — including a starring role on "One Tree Hill" – and his marriage to co-star Sophia Bush, there is a lot that fans might not know about him and his personal life. For instance, Murray once experienced an incredibly scary medical issue, and he was just a teenager himself at the time, as he told radio host Jess Cagle on "The Jess Cagle Show" (via YouTube).

Commenting on why he became an actor, Murray said that it happened when he was hospitalized at 15 years old. "The one thing that really saved me from that moment in life, where I missed Christmas, I missed New Year's," he said, "was television and film." The actor was able to take his mind off of things by watching entertaining shows and he wanted to do that for other people. 

While Murray is healthy and thriving today, fans may be surprised at just how serious his medical condition was at the time.

On his appearance on "The Jess Cagle Show," Chad Michael Murray elaborated on why he had been hospitalized. When he was 15 years old, his intestines twisted, but no one quite knew what was wrong. The actor was in great physical condition because he played football, but his abs hid the problem. "When I started bleeding internally, my stomach didn't expand. Basically, my abs kept it flat, and so the doctors couldn't tell that I was bleeding," Murray revealed.

Murray added that he nearly died in the hospital and there was even a priest at the end of his bed to perform his last rites. Meanwhile, Murray recalled, his father was crying and praying at the end of his bed, which Murray saw in the rare moments he was awake. Murray has previously spoken about his close relationship with his father to Seventeen, telling the magazine, "I idolize my father. I mean, he has worked so hard in his life." Murray's hospitalization was clearly an emotional moment for the two.

Fortunately, Chad Michael Murray explained to radio host Jess Cagle that a nurse at the hospital named Sandy saved his life by deciding to perform a blood transfusion. "She got four units of blood and saved my life that night. Against the grain. She just did it. She locked the door. She gave me four units of blood. Saved my life," said Murray. 

In recent years, Murray has continued to use his experience to pay it forward to other fans. Per J-14, he — with Bailee Madison and Kaitlin Vilasuso on their podcast "Just Between Us" – surprised a three-time cancer survivor named Alexandra Wilson. Much like Murray when in the hospital, Wilson found happiness during chemo treatments by watching "One Tree Hill," which Murray took joy in. "I became an actor because I wanted to create entertainment to keep people's minds ... in great places. And that's what's so beautiful," he admitted.