Elizabeth Taylor taken to hospital for heart problem

Elizabeth Taylor has been admitted to hospital for treatment of congestive heart failure. Her spokeswoman, Sally Morrison, said the Oscar-winning actress was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles within the past couple of days, according to News.au.com.

The 78-year-old Taylor is being treated for symptoms caused by congestive heart failure, a condition she disclosed she had back in November 2004.

Morrison said it was not known how long Taylor might be in hospital. She added that Taylor's family appreciated the support from fans, but asked for privacy to allow the medical team to do its work.

Taylor had been scheduled to attend an amfAR benefit gala on Wednesday night in New York, where she was to receive an award alongside former president Bill Clinton and designer Diane von Furstenberg, celebrating their dedication to AIDS research.

But Taylor missed the event, so Sir Elton John accepted the honour on her behalf and passed along a message from her: "I am there in spirit and I join you in saluting my fellow honourees and all these extraordinary leaders.

"I am inspired by their example, exhilarated by their vision, and encouraged by their compassion and love. And I love them in return."
Taylor, who has appeared in more than 50 films, won Oscars for her performances in Butterfield 8 in 1960 and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? in 1966.

However she has been just as famous for her marriages - all eight of them, including two to Richard Burton - and her lifelong battles with substance abuse, her weight and physical ailments.