luchar con la muerte

1.
All Spanish-speaking regionsneutral
- To struggle physically or medically to avoid dying; to fight for one's life during a severe illness, injury, or life‑threatening situation.
2.
All Spanish-speaking regionsliteraryfigurative
- To confront death, fate, or imminent ruin in a more general or metaphorical sense; to engage in a desperate struggle against overwhelming danger.

Examples:

ES: Después de tres meses de luchar con la muerte, éste es su primer signo de vida.
EN: After three months battling death, it's the first sign of life.
ES: los oía sofocarse y luchar con la muerte.
EN: Then the attackers put phosphor grenades into the ventilation shafts.
ES: Me destrozaría como se destroza la vida al luchar con la muerte.
EN: I will be shattered just like life.. ..gets shattered on facing death.
ES: ¡Y vas a luchar con la muerte!
EN: And you will fight with death!