Katie Slaton Dead At 37 — 1000-lb Sisters Star Loses Cancer Battle

This is one of those updates I wish I did not have to write. Katie Slaton, a familiar face from TLC's 1000-lb Sisters and cousin to Tammy and Amy Slaton, has died at 37 after a battle with cancer.

Katie was never a full-time lead on the show, but if you watched season 5, you saw her pop up alongside Tammy and Amy. The news came from their sister, Amanda Halterman, who shared it on Instagram and made it painfully clear how close the family was to Katie.

"My little cousin went to sit at the feet of Jesus yesterday."

Amanda called Katie the life of the party and her best friend, and asked for prayers for the entire family — specifically their aunt, uncle, and cousins, the babies, and someone named Natalie — as they navigate the loss.

To lay out the essentials:

• Age: 37
• Date of death: August 25
• Location: Linda White Hospice House in Indiana
• Funeral: August 29 at Whitsell Funeral Home in Morganfield
• Diagnosis: Stage 4 gastric adenocarcinoma (a rare stomach cancer), discovered earlier this year; she had been undergoing chemotherapy
• Show connection: Recurring presence on 1000-lb Sisters, especially in season 5, appearing with cousins Tammy and Amy Slaton

Halterman had posted earlier in the year asking fans to keep Katie in their thoughts as treatment continued. Since the announcement, tributes have been rolling in from viewers who knew Katie from the show and from those who followed her story through the family.

It is a tough loss for the Slaton family and for fans who got to know Katie on screen — even in those brief, very human moments that reality TV sometimes gets right.