A description of the specific factors leading to the termination of the biological functions that sustain life. (https://www.bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=tda)

The underlying or proximate cause of death is that which, in a continuous sequence, unbroken by an efficient intervening cause, produces the fatality and without which the end result would not have occurred. (ifs.harriscountytx.gov)

Immediate causes of death are complications and sequelae of the underlying cause. There may be one or more immediate causes, and they may occur over a prolonged interval, but none absolves the underlying cause of its ultimate responsibility. (ifs.harriscountytx.gov)