Roma Downey celebrated her career with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame — but her famous costar
Della Reese is fading! The 85-year-old showbiz legend shocked longtime fans with her sickly appearance as she came out in a wheelchair to support Roma!
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Della told
The National ENQUIRER in an exclusive interview when she was diagnosed with deadly Type 2 diabetes, which can cripple and even kill its victims. "My life is at stake," said Della. "I don't have Type 2 diabetes — Type 2 diabetes has me. I've had to make some big changes to have the quality of life I want."
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Della, who starred with Roma on "Touched By An Angel" from 1994 to 2003, first realized she had a problem while on the show's set in 2000. "I felt a pain in the back of my head," said Della. "And later I became disoriented. Two members of the crew had to hold me up. I was taken to the hospital, but the doctors gave me a clean bill of health. If they had just taken a blood test, the mystery could have been cleared up!"
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Della explained that when the head pain returned, she got tested and was diagnosed with diabetes. "My blood pressure and cholesterol were also high," Della said. "I knew I had to make drastic changes in my life. I was frightened at first. I'd lost my mentor, gospel legend Mahalia Jackson, to complications from diabetes — and my friend Ella Fitzgerald lost her legs because of the disease!"
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Della told The ENQUIRER that she was determined to change her lifestyle, but the star was clearly struggling to be at Roma's side for her big honor. She bravely continued to take roles over the years, once boasting: "I have to work, to do something" — but she hasn't appeared onscreen since 2014.
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