Coco Lee’s mum, 86, begged doctors not to turn off life support as sister pleaded ‘give her a chance’ after suicide bid
COCO Lee's devastated mum begged doctors not to switch off the star's life support, her sister has revealed.
The Hong Kong-born singer, 48, died in hospital on Wednesday following a suicide attempt days earlier that left her in a coma.
Coco's sister Nancy said after she was rushed to hospital on Sunday, doctors declared her brain dead.
But Coco's heartbroken mum, 86, refused for her to be taken off life support.
Nancy told : "The most heartbreaking thing was to see my elderly mother.
"Although Coco's brain cells were dead, she refused to give up on her.
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"When we were at the hospital, we were told that there was no chance of saving Coco and to give up, but I told the doctor that my mum lost her husband when she was not even 40 years old."
Nancy said she also implored medics to "give my sister Coco a chance".
She added: "My heart is shattered. I can't believe it.
"Every time I went to the ward, I checked my sister's heartbeat and oxygen monitors and kept an eye on them every second.
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"When it beeped, I was shocked, because the doctor said she would leave any time and told us to prepare for the worst."
It's understood Coco had lunch with her mum and sister Carol at her sibling's apartment on Sunday before taking a shower.
But that afternoon, a maid frantically called cops after finding Coco after she tried to take her own life and she was taken to hospital.
Coco then sadly died on Wednesday, her elder sisters Nancy and Carol said in an emotional tribute, adding that the "demon inside [Coco] took the better of her".
They explained the Chinese-American star had been suffering from depression for a few years, but she ";deteriorated drastically" over the last few months.
Coco married Canadian businessman Bruce Rockowitz in 2011. In recent years there were rumours that the pair had split, but neither addressed speculation nor confirmed it.
The star, best known for singing Reflection for Disney's Mulan, had been open about her mental and physical struggles with fans on social media.
She had described the final year of her life as "incredibly difficult" in her final Instagram update which she shared on New Year's Eve.
'FEMALE WARRIOR'
Dubbing herself the "female warrior", she sought to inspire fans with her story of overcoming hardship and her health woes.
Behind her brave words, the performer was dealing with excruciating pain due to ongoing issues with her lower body.
She was born with a defect in her left leg and underwent an operation at two years old that was unsuccessful.
Coco was plagued by issues with her leg throughout her life and was forced to heavily rely on her right leg to support her body.
Although her incredible stage presence masked her suffering, the 48-year-old had been riddled with issues stemming from the defect.
Her problems worsened in October last year, when her injury flared up after Coco had over-exerted herself during a dance rehearsal.
She was then forced to undergo major surgery, which reportedly took place in February, at a hospital in Hong Kong.
Surgeons operated on her pelvis and thigh during the two-hour operation, which left her needing to learn to walk again.
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Coco - who sold tens of millions of Chinese and English albums after her singing in Mulan earned her international acclaim - only revealed the extent of her health issues to fans in March when she shared a clip of herself before and after.
The Hong Kong icon, who dropped her latest single Tragic on February 14, described the procedure as "successful" in an online post.
You're Not Alone
EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide.
It doesn't discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society - from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.
It's the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes.
And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women.
Yet it's rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.
That is why The Sun launched the You're Not Alone campaign.
The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our bit to help save lives.
Let's all vow to ask for help when we need it, and listen out for others... You're Not Alone.
If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support:
- CALM, , 0800 585 858
- Heads Together,
- Mind, , 0300 123 3393
- Papyrus,, 0800 068 41 41
- Samaritans, , 116 123
- Movember,
- Anxiety UK , 03444 775 774 Monday-Friday 9.30am-10pm, Saturday/Sunday 10am-8pm