Culture

Drag Race legend Chi Chi DeVayne shares update after being rushed to hospital with kidney failure

Chi Chi DeVayne in a hospital bed with tubes attached / her All Stars 3 promo picture

Chi Chi DeVayne was hospitalised with kidney failure. (Instagram/VH1)

Chi Chi DeVayne shared a hospital bed selfie days after she was taken ill with kidney failure.

The Drag Race star, who competed in season six and All Stars 3, shared a picture of her torso hooked up to “one billion wires” on her Instagram Sunday (July 19).

Chi Chi, real name Zavion Davenport, revealed on Thursday (July 16) that she had been taken to hospital after falling ill.

Although she tested negative for COVID-19, doctors found that she had high blood pressure and was “going through kidney failure”.

“So tomorrow they’re going to give me a biopsy on my kidneys and let me know what it is that’s making my blood pressure so high, so I just want to say that I love you guys,” she added.

Chi Chi DeVayne's torso with wires attached

Chi Chi shared this photo on Sunday. (Instagram)

In a later update, she said doctors had managed to get her blood pressure down, but she would need three hours of dialysis as her kidneys were not working.

Over the weekend she thanked friends and fans for their “outpouring of love”.

“It’s day three, and I’m feeling much bettah,” she said in an Instagram story, referring to Drag Race UK star Baga Chipz’s catchphrase.

“I’m ready to get the hell out of here. But I know I’ve got to get well first. But I’m ready to go.”

“I see you alls outpouring of love. I promise I’m gonna call y’all back I’m just still overwhelmed.”

Chi Chi DeVayne has rare tissue condition.

In 2018, Chi Chi revealed that she had been diagnosed with scleroderma, an uncommon condition caused by the immune system attacking the tissue under the skin, and around internal organs and blood vessels.

This can cause scarring and thickening of the tissue in these areas, and in some cases can be life-threatening.

Sharing her diagnosis, the Drag Race star said she’d kept it hidden for the best part of a year because she was afraid of “losing out on jobs and facing criticism from friends and fans”.

“Bottling this up has had me in a state of depression … it has made me hate my appearance … and also made me stray away from the public eye but I’m no longer hiding and living in a state of fear … I just ask you all to keep me in your prayers as I battle with this life changing illness,” she said at the time.

Since going into hospital, fans and fellow Drag Race alumni have rallied around Chi Chi, urging others to consider helping her out financially in the face of a likely massive hospital bill.

https://twitter.com/TheVixensworld/status/1283829188252831745

https://twitter.com/gigiphobia/status/1284306386080411649

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