Former "Baywatch" star Pamela Anderson told CNN's Larry King that she will take a year off her career to undergo a potentially debilitating treatment for hepatitis C, Reuters reported.

Anderson claimed in March that she contracted the potentially fatal liver disease by sharing a tattoo needle with ex-husband, Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee.

Lee denies that he has the disease, and called the claim an "attack." Anderson announced her engagement to another rocker, Kid Rock, in April.

Anderson told King that there are "a lot of side effects" from the treatment, which will involve powerful anti-viral drugs, Reuters reported.

"It's going to be a year of basically having the flu," Anderson said. "Your hair falls out. It's a little kind of chemotherapy. I want to do it for my kids, because I don't want to die, basically."

Anderson told King that she underwent a biopsy on her liver, and that it was still relatively healthy. She will begin the treatment with interferon and other drugs starting in December.

The Centers for Disease Control estimates that interferon treatment works on about 30 to 40 percent of U.S. patients, Reuters reported.

Anderson said previously that she has already undergone outpatient treatment at the University of California, Los Angeles, Medical Center for the disease.