Whoopi Goldberg feels "very, very lucky" to be alive after battling pneumonia and sepsis earlier this year.
The Sister Act star caught what she thought was a common cold late last year, but in February the 63-year-old was hospitalised and diagnosed with pneumonia in both lungs. She also had sepsis, a potentially deadly condition caused by the body's response to an infection that can lead to tissue damage and organ failure.
Opening up about her health scare in an interview with People magazine, The View co-host revealed she later found out she had a 30 per cent chance of dying throughout the ordeal.
"The doctor told me: "Listen, you're not going anywhere tomorrow and you're not going anywhere next week because you are really sick'," she shared.
Whoopi took a six-week hiatus from her work commitments and, although she returned to her hosting duties on The View back in March, she's had to scale back her commitments to allow herself to recover properly.
"It's going to be a while before I'm back to 100 per cent," The Color Purple star confessed. "It really took me down, but I'm getting there. I never thought of pneumonia as something that serious…I hope that this is a cautionary tale for people. You have to take the time to take care of yourself.
"I'm lucky to be alive. I'm happy to be alive. I'm grateful to be alive."