Pammie in Hepatitis C scare

Pamela Anderson says she has caught hepatitis C from sharing a tattoo needle with former husband Tommy Lee.

She claimed Lee never told her he had the condition during their marriage.

The pair are locked in a custody battle over their two children and Lee claims his former wife is trying to attack him and the children.

Anderson told reporters at the University of California Medial Centre in Los Angeles: "It is true I have hepatitis C and have undergone outpatient treatment."

Lee's publicist, Beth Katz, countered by saying: "Her actions are a clear attack on Tommy and hopefully she will realise that she is only doing more harm to her children and herself by trying to use the media as a tool to hurt Tommy and their two boys."

About 3.9 million Americans have hepatitis C, which is spread through blood-to-blood contact. In some patients, it can cause severe liver damage, leading to cirrhosis, liver cancer and liver failure.

About 8,000 to 10,000 people in the US die each year from complications due to hepatitis C infection.

Current treatments work by boosting the immune system rather than attacking the virus, and are not successful in many patients.