Nine-Eleven will forever be remembered as one tragic encounter with death and terrorism. Also on a sad note, this is the day 39-year old actor Andy Whitfield lost to a true to life battle.

“On a beautiful sunny Sydney spring morning, surrounded by his family, in the arms of his loving wife, our beautiful young warrior Andy Whitfield lost his 18 month battle with lymphoma cancer,” Andy’s wife Vashti said in a statement.

“He passed peacefully surrounded by love. Thank you to all his fans whose love and support have help carry him to this point. He will be remembered as the inspiring, courageous and gentle man, father and husband he was.”

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of our dear friend and colleague, Andy Whitfield,” said Starz president and CEO Chris Albrecht. “We were fortunate to have worked with Andy in Spartacus and came to know the man who played a champion on-screen was also a champion in his own life. ”

Lymphoma is a cancer in the lymphatic cells of the body’s immune system. Treatment may involve chemotherapy, radiotherapy and bone marrow transplantation. It can be cured depending on the type, histology and stage.