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Young 'Lion King' actor getting crucial transplant

By theGrio

4:47 PM on 08/13/2010

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Related News: Jordin Sparks reaches the 'Heights' of Broadway; Judith Jamison honored at White House dance event; 11-year-old 'Lion King' actress gets blood transplant

11-year-old Shannon Tavarez, who starred in the Broadway musical "The Lion King" and suffers with Leukemia, relaxes in her room in the Bellrose section of Queens, New York, Friday, July 16, 2010. (AP Photo/Rick Maiman)

NEW YORK (AP) -- An 11-year-old girl who played young Nala in "The Lion King" on Broadway is getting a potentially lifesaving procedure.

Shannon Tavarez has leukemia and will get an umbilical-cord blood transplant Tuesday. The blood-producing stem cells used in transplants can come from cord blood, bone marrow or blood.

WATCH AN ORIGINAL GRIO PROFILE OF SHANNON TAVAREZ:

Her mother, Odiney Brown, says she's praying it will work.

The actress was forced to quit the show in April. Cast members held a bone marrow donor registration drive for her last month.