Katherine Heigl has broken her silence on her Grey's Anatomy co-star Eric Dane's death.

The 47-year-old actress - who starred as Isobel "Izzie" Stevens alongside the late actor's Dr. Marc Sloan on the ABC medical drama - admitted it took her a few days to decide whether to public mourn the devasting loss after Eric died from complications of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) at age 53 on February 19.

She began an emotional Instagram post on Sunday (22.02.26): "I debated this post for days.

"I have never been comfortable grieving publicly. I share my tears, my stories and my memories with those I'm closest to and more times than not I share them only with the heavens alone. But that silence can often look like a lack of care which I could not abide here."

She then addressed Dane's loved ones directly, offering a message that acknowledged the depth of their grief.

Mentioning his primary caretaker and ex, Rebecca Gayheart, 54, and their daughters, Billie Beatrice, 15, and Georgia Geraldine, 13, she continued: "Rebecca, Billie, Georgia… There is so little, if in fact anything, one can say about a tragic loss like yours. All the 'I'm sorries' and ' my prayers are with you' ring a bit hollow in the midst of so much pain and grief. So I will say the only thing that has ever brought me peace when I've lost someone I love."

She then quoted Robert Frost's poem Nothing Gold Can Stay.

Natures first green is gold, her hardest hue to hold. Her early leaf's a flower; but only so an hour. Then leaf subsides to leaf. So Eden sank to grief, so Dawn goes down to day. Nothing gold can stay."

She added: "I will never forget Eric's gold and I will forever be grateful I got to bask in it for even a brief moment in time. Thank you for sharing him with us. God Speed my old friend…here's to your next great adventure."