Michael Jackson to Need Lung Transplant?

According to the author of a new Michael Jackson biography, the self-proclaimed King of Pop is in need of a lung transplant due to the effects of a rare respiratory condition with which he has been afflicted.

The author, Ian Halperin, told In Touch magazine and Britain's Sunday Express that the performer may even be fighting for his life.

The disease Jackson was diagnosed with, according to Halperin, is known as Alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency, which is a genetic condition that is occasionally fatal.

"He's had it for years, but it's gotten worse," Halperin told In Touch. "He needs a lung transplant but may be too weak to go through with it. He also has emphysema and chronic gastrointestinal bleeding, which his doctors have had a lot of trouble stopping. It's the bleeding that is the most problematic part. It could kill him," according to the Chronicle.

Jackson "can barely speak" and "the vision in his left eye is 95 percent gone," Halperin said.

Although Jackson's brother, Jermaine, didn't deny the reports, his official spokesman was unavailable for comment on Sunday. Jermaine told Fox News, "He's not doing so well right now. This isn't a good time."

Dr. Len Horovitz, a pulmonary specialist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, treated Jackson at Lenox Hill in 1999.

"Alpha-1-anti-trypsin deficiency is a relatively rare genetic disorder that becomes apparent in young adulthood and early middle age, especially if smoking is added to the equation," Horovitz said in a hospital news release. "The liver can also be affected, causing cirrhosis. The disease produces an early-onset emphysema, just as one might see in an older smoker. Treatment for mild or moderate cases involves infusions of a specific medication. In advanced stages, a lung transplant may be necessary.

"Since this is a genetic disorder, other members of the Jackson family must be tested for this genetic variant," Horovitz added.