This is the tragic conclusion to a story that Arnaud Denis himself had chosen to make public. For months, he had spoken of the deterioration in his health and explained why he was considering dying in Belgium. On 22 September, RTL confirmed his death by euthanasia, citing his lawyer.
Before illness and pain took over his life, Arnaud Denis was, first and foremost, a man of the theatre. An actor and director, nominated three times for the Molière Awards, he had performed in the great classics, from Molière to Shakespeare, and directed nearly forty productions. He had also appeared in films, notably in Jalil Lespert’s *Yves Saint Laurent*, as well as on television.
Then, in July 2023, his life was turned upside down. Suffering from an inguinal hernia, he underwent surgery during which a polypropylene mesh was implanted. The operation is routine. But in the days that followed, Denis reported the onset of numerous symptoms: severe pain, digestive problems, nausea, tremors, and muscular, neurological and hormonal disorders. Within three months, he lost 17 kilos.
The prosthesis was eventually removed, but his condition did not return to normal. Arnaud Denis attributed the deterioration in his health to this implant. In particular, he said he had been diagnosed with severe myalgic encephalomyelitis and ASIA syndrome. However, this latter diagnosis must be treated with caution: the existence of an immune intolerance syndrome caused by the materials used in hernia prostheses remains disputed in the medical literature and by specialists in hernia surgery. For its part, the manufacturer Medtronic stated that its investigations continued to conclude that the model in question had a positive risk-benefit ratio.
This distinction is crucial: Arnaud Denis’s harrowing ordeal is well documented, but the causal link between all his symptoms and the implant has not been established either legally or scientifically. The Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office has, moreover, dismissed his complaint for causing bodily harm through negligence, on the grounds that the investigations had not made it possible to determine with certainty the cause of the adverse effects. His lawyer then appealed to the senior investigating judge in an attempt to have an investigation opened.
Arnaud Denis, for his part, had turned his own ordeal into a collective campaign. He had set up a Facebook group dedicated to French victims of hernia prostheses, gathering hundreds of testimonies, and had become one of the public figures at the forefront of this campaign.
Over the months, his condition had deteriorated considerably. In March 2026, he was admitted to a palliative care unit in Belgium. He explained at the time that he was almost constantly bedridden, could no longer wash himself, and had great difficulty walking and eating. His request for euthanasia was already at a very advanced stage, and he stated that he had ‘tried everything’.
Just a few days before his death, on 18 September, he learnt that his complaint had been dismissed. Severely weakened, he said he no longer had the energy to continue the fight himself, whilst his lawyer announced his intention to pursue the case.
On Tuesday 22 September, the decision he had been announcing for several months thus became a reality. He had posted a final message on Facebook that morning, before passing away in Namur a few hours later.
It would, however, be reductive to remember Arnaud Denis solely for this tragic end. He had devoted a large part of his life to the theatre, to writing, to actors and to directing. His illness then, against his will, cast him in another role: that of a patient turned whistleblower, determined right to the end that his story should at least serve to shed light on the stories of others.
His life’s journey now leaves two stories in its wake. That of a 43-year-old artist who passed away far too soon. And that of a complex medical and healthcare case which, for its part, may not yet be over.
