Todd Akin, whose "legitimate rape" comment is widely blamed for his losing a U.S. Senate race, has died at 74

Former U.S. Rep. Todd Akin, a conservative Missouri Republican whose comment that women's bodies have a way of avoiding pregnancies in cases of "legitimate rape" sunk his bid for the U.S. Senate and became a cautionary tale for other GOP candidates, died late Sunday. He was 74.

Akin had cancer for several years, his son, Perry, said in a statement. He died at his home in Wildwood, a St. Louis suburb.

"As my father's death approached, we had people from all different walks of life share story after story of the personal impact he had on them," Perry Akin said in a statement to The Associated Press.