Cole says she has hepatitis C

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Cole says she has hepatitis C

The Associated Press

Wednesday, July 16, 2008; 4:51 AM

NEW YORK -- Grammy-winning singer Cole has been diagnosed with hepatitis

C, her publicist said in a statement Wednesday.

Hepatitis C is a liver disease spread through contact with infected blood. The

statement said the disease was revealed during a routine examination and was

likely caused by her drug use years ago.

" I've been so fortunate to have learned so much from my past experiences, " said

Cole. " I am embraced by the love and support of my family and friends; I am

committed to my belief in myself and in my abiding faith to meet this challenge

with a heartfelt optimism and determination. This is how I intend to deal with

this current challenge in my life. "

Dr. Graham Woolf, Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCLA/Cedars Sinai

Medical Center, said that Cole has had a " terrific response to her medication

and is now virus negative. "

" This gives her an increased chance of cure, " he said. " But, she has also

suffered significant side effects from the anti-viral medicine, which is the

only FDA authorized treatment for hepatitis C. Her side effects include fatigue,

muscle aches and dehydration but she is recovering from these. "

Cole, 58, the daughter of jazz legend Nat King Cole, has sold millions of

records over her long career. She is due to release " Still Unforgettable, " the

follow-up to 1991's Grammy-winning, multiplatinum CD " Unforgettable ... With

Love, " on which she remade some of her father's classics, in September.

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