Soul star Natalie Cole still isn't sure how she contracted liver disease hepatitis C - from her days as a heroin user or from a dirty tattoo needle.

The Unforgettable singer was diagnosed with the incurable disease in February, while undergoing blood test work for insurance purposes - and she learned she could have been infected as long as 25 years ago.

Cole tells Jet magazine, "This virus had been in my body for 25 years since my drug use. It does lie dormant." But she accepts she may have contracted hepatitis C from a 10-year-old tattoo.

She adds, "People who have these real extreme tattoos or a lot of tattoos, (it) may show up in their blood many, many years from now."

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(This news article provided by World Entertainment News Network)