Myrl Jeffcoat wisgroup_leader@yahoo.com

A man claiming to be a long term friend of Anna Nicole Smith, claims she was suffering from Lupus, and that her body often ached.

Knowing there are also accountings of Anna having issues with breast implants, this would certainly make sense.

Here's the story as reported by Entertainment Tonight.

Myrl

http://www.webstarmagic.com/wisletter.htm

http://www.myrljeffcoat.com

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New Claims: Anna Nicole's Hidden Illness

Disneyland Pal Says She Suffered From Lupus

Anna Nicole Smith may have suffered from the autoimmune disease lupus.

(CBS) A man who said he was a longtime friend of Anna Nicole Smith said the ex-Playmate suffered from the autoimmune disease lupus.

"I never told anyone this," Frank Rodriguez told "The Insider" in an exclusive interview. "She asked me to swear I would never, ever ever tell anybody."

Rodriguez said he is speaking out now because he doesn't like people calling the late starlet "a drug addict."

"She had a very serious condition, and I think people are entitled to know the truth," he said.

Rodriguez said he met Smith and her late son, Daniel, at Disneyland in 1996. He was working for guest relations at the time and was her tour guide on more than one occasion.

"We had a very special friendship," he said.

Several people have appeared on news programs claiming to have had a friendship with Smith. But Howard K. Stern, Smith's lawyer and companion, told "The Insider" that Rodriguez was a friend and part of Smith's "inner circle."

Smith revealed to Rodriguez that she had lupus in 1998.

"Her whole body would ache," he said. "She would just shut down basically, she would sleep for days on. … She pulled me aside and she told me that she was on medication for it."

According to the Lupus Research Organization, lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease in which the immune system turns against the body and harms healthy cells and tissues. Some of the most common symptoms include extreme fatigue, painful or swollen joints, unexplained fever, skin rashes, and kidney problems. There is currently no cure for the disease.
Smith, 39, died in a Florida hotel Feb. 8. The cause of her death is still under investigation.

More of the interview will air on "The Insider" Tuesday night.