Natalie Cole Receives a Kidney, but Loses a Sister to Cancer

Songstress Natalie Cole, 59, the daughter of the legendary Nat "King" Cole, went into surgery on Tuesday for a kidney transplant at the same time her older sister passed away.

Cole, who had been diagnosed with hepatitis C in 2008, has had health issues ever since her diagnosis. Her diagnosis was related to her years of dealing with a drug addiction. After Cole spoke about her illness and her need for a donor on Larry King Live, she received tons of mail from fans expressing their love and offering their own kidneys to the star. A loving fan of Cole's who was suffering from a fatal illness requested that her kidney be given to Natalie. OneLegacy coordinated the organ donation for Cole and said that it was rare for a donor to state who they wanted as the recipient of their organ.

Natalie received news about the kidney while she was by her sister's side. The older sister of Natalie, Carol "Cookie" Cole was suffering from lung cancer and died during Natalie's kidney transplant surgery. Carol Cole was 64 years old.

Timolin Colin, Natalie Cole's younger sister, told the New York Post on Thursday, "This is all so surreal, and it is devastating. Our sister Cookie hadn't been to a doctor in 30 years, and last week she went in and they found a cancerous spot on her lung. They wanted to start chemo right away, but Cookie said no."

Natalie went in for surgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles and is currently recuperating after a successful transplant.