Cheryl Cole has given her full support to a proposed malaria vaccine.

The singer was struck down by the disease in 2010 after visiting Tanzania and it was so intense that at one point she was on the brink of death.

Speaking about her ordeal in her 2012 autobiography Cheryl: My Story, the Girls Aloud star said: "It’s almost as if it was God’s way of forcing me to stop and get off the roller coaster ride my life had become. It made me take a good look at myself - and that’s what I’ve done."

Today (October 8) Cole tweeted a link to a news story about drug maker GlaxoSmithKline seeking approval for the first ever malaria vaccine, adding:

"Oh my god. I pray that this works out!! #pleasegod."

Cole admitted on Twitter earlier this year that she still finds it difficult to open up about her malaria experience. The singer said:

"I have found, and still find it incredibly hard to talk about publicly as my experience is still very fresh and raw in my mind."