Joan Rivers' daughter released a statement this morning confirming that the comedian is on life support - despite claims by the comedian’s friends that she was slowly recovering. ‘On behalf of my mother and our family, we are extremely grateful for all the love and support we've received. At this time she does remain on life support,’ Melissa Rivers stated. ‘I know my mother would be overwhelmed by the continued outpouring of kindness and I want to thank everyone for keeping us in their prayers.’ Scroll down for video . Just hours before the throat operation that has . left her in a medically-induced coma, comedian Joan Rivers was laughing . about 'going in for a little procedure', close friend Jay Redack, left, . has revealed . The statement appears to contradict claims made by the 81-year-old comedians' friends, who said that Rivers was on the road to recovery. Joan . Rivers is making slow and steady progress in her recovery as doctors . continue the delicate task of waking her from a medically induced coma . this week. The . 81-year-old comedian stopped breathing during minor throat surgery on . Thursday in New York City and was left battling for her life over the . weekend amid fears the entertainer might be left a 'vegetable' or . needing a 'wheelchair'. However, . friends have dismissed these claims and said that Rivers is improving . day by day at Mount Sinai Hospital with her daughter, Melissa Rivers, at . her bedside. 'It's a slow process, but she's on the road to recovery,' said a source to E! 'She's getting better. Don't believe all this ridiculous speculation.' Daughter, Melissa, who rushed across the country from LA to New York on Thursday has focused all her attention onto her mother's recovery. 'She is a rock. She is calmer than I've ever seen her,' the source said to E! News. 'All these reports about doomsday are not true. She is her mother's daughter and she's tough as nails. She's the person keeping everyone together.' This comes after it was reported Rivers was laughing about 'going in for a little procedure' before she suffered cardiac and respiratory arrest during her operation at an Upper East Side Clinic. Margie Stern and daughter Ricki Stern seen visited Joan Rivers at Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan on Sunday . Doctors on Sunday started the delicate process to bring the comedian out of a medically induced coma which will take until Tuesday. Doctors fear the stroke could have left her 'as a vegetable' or 'needing a wheelchair'. Earlier . on Sunday her close friend and collaborator for 40 years Jay Redack had . attempted to visit her in hospital, but was turned away by security. He . was one of the last people to spent time with Rivers. The old friends . had enjoyed dinner on Wednesday night after her hour-long stand-up . session at the Laurie Beechman Theatre in Times Square. ‘She . said her throat was bothering her for a long time. Her voice was . getting more raspy, if that was possible. She said she was just going in . for a little procedure in the morning, that was it,’ he told the Daily News. Redack described Rivers as 'up and alive and having a ton of fun' at dinner. 'We laughed out asses off,' he said. Daughter . Melissa, 46, released a statement on Sunday thanking everyone for their . messages of support. She is pictured on Thursday, with . 13-year-old son Cooper (left), after rushing to the airport in LA to . catch a flight to NYC to be with her mother . 'What’s ironic is at dinner, we were talking about who goes first. I’ve know Joan so damn long.' 'I said, "Here’s what I’ll leave you if I go first. What’ll you leave me?" She said, "I'll think about it,'" he said. Other friends to have visited the hospital included Margie Stern, one of Rivers' closest friends. Rivers' family are said to be . considering bringing a lawsuit after she suddenly stopped breathing . during the 'botched' procedure. 'Shock and upset is turning to anger, and they are looking for someone to blame,' a source close to the family told the Daily News. 'An 81-year-old should not have that procedure as an outpatient.' New York Police Department has said that it is not yet looking at launching an investigation into the clinic's actions. Daughter Melissa, 46, released a statement on Sunday thanking everyone for their . messages of support and gave a brief update on her mother's condition. 'My mother would be so touched by the tributes and prayers that we have received from around the world,' she said. 'Her . condition remains serious but she is receiving the best treatment and . care possible. We ask that you continue to keep her in your thoughts as . we pray for her recovery.' Worried sick: Kelly Osbourne, Rivers' Fashion Police co-host, took to Twitter to express her support for the 81-year-old comedian whom she called her 'grandma' Well wisher: Giuliana Rancic (far right), who also hosts Fashion Police, expressed her love for Rivers on Twitter . While . she is doing her best to sound upbeat in public, 'Melissa is apparently . totally hysterical and is at a loss for what to do,' said the source. Doctors . put the Emmy-winner into a medically-induced coma to stabilize her . vital signs and since then she has been breathing with the help of a . life-support machine. Sources told the Daily News that Rivers . would not want to live unless she could enjoy 'a full and active life. ... (She) would never want to be a burden on anyone.' E! colleagues and a host . of other famous well-wishers took to Twitter at the weekend to send prayers to the . formidable comedian. Giuliana . Rancic and Kelly Osbourne, Rivers' Fashion Police co-hosts, expressed . their love and support for their stricken friend. High praise: Donald Trump, who met Joan Rivers on Season 2 of Celebrity Apprentice, which the E! presenter won in 2009, called the 81-year-old a dear friend and an amazing woman . Heartfelt: Charlie Sheen joined the chorus of well-wishers, urging Rivers to come back to us . 'Praying . for @Joan_Rivers and @MelRivers,' Mrs Rancic wrote on Saturday morning. 'Even though Joan's the strongest woman I know, every single prayer . counts. I love you, Joan.' A devastated Ms Osbourne called her 81-year-old co-presenter her ‘grandma’ and added the hashtag 'inconsolable.’ '4 . the first time in years I got down on my knees & prayed tonight! I . encourage U 2 do the same,' the TV fashionista tweeted at her . 3.77million followers on Friday night. Charlie Sheen also joined the chorus of well-wishers on Twitter, writing: 'Please come back to us young lady.' Real estate mogul and fellow reality TV maven Donald Trump called Ms Rivers his 'dear friend' and an ‘amazing woman.' Ms Rivers famously won season 2 of Trump’s Celebrity Apprentice in 2009. Fellow . funnywoman Sarah Silverman tweeted on Friday: 'Jesus Christ, Joan. You . can't be in the hospital - you have work to do! This is BULL****.' The 81-year-old's daughter Melissa, seen here with her mom last year, . is in New York and at her mother's bedside at Mount Sinai Hospital . The comic's daughter, Melissa rushed to her mother's side on Thursday after flying from LA to New York. Melissa is staying at her Upper East Side apartment in . the same building where her mother lives as she struggles to cope with the health emergency. Friends . are helping care for Melissa's 13-year-old son Cooper who flew with her . from LA. Earlier on Thursday they were pictured at Los Angeles airport . as they traveled to be by the star's side. A . picture of health only the day before she was rushed to hospital, Rivers accepted a bouquet of . flowers from a fan as she finished her stand-up performance at around . 9.30pm on Wednesday. The . entertainment legend even posed for pictures with a fan on the way out . of the Laurie Beechman Theatre, only to suffer respiratory failure less . than twelve hours later during surgery on her throat. Thank . you: Joan Rivers accepts a bouquet of flowers from a fan after wrapping . up her one hour performance at the Laurie Beechman Theatre on Wednesday . night at around 9.30pm . Busy . as always: Joan Rivers is pictured here at a press event in New York . City on Wednesday evening for her book, Diary of a Mad Diva. She is . currently in a medically induced coma at Mount Sinai Hospital after she . stopped breathing during vocal cord surgery . While . doctors were said to be keen to keep her in a coma until the weekend, . there is concern about the length of time her brain was starved of . oxygen. But . less than 12 hours before she stopped breathing, Rivers was her usual . irrepressible self, making jokes about her own longevity and mortality . to an audience of around 100. 'She did a joke onstage, she goes, ‘I’m 81 — I could go at any moment,’ said Shade Rupe, 45. ‘I could fall over right here and you all could say, ''I was there!’ Rupe, who spoke to the New York Daily News, said that Rivers' comedy was as quick-witted as it has always been. 'She . was so on,' he said. 'If you had me guess her age, I’d say she was in . her 50s. She didn’t miss a step, she didn’t go ditzy, she didn’t forget . anything and her timing was amazing.' Rupe grabbed a picture with the star outside the theater and said that Rivers 'looked fantastic.' And, . as testament to the television host's vigor, Rivers was even promoting . her book, Diary of a Mad Diva, before she took to the stage on . Wednesday. Rivers, . who has been a fixture on American television since the mid-1960s, was . her forthright self according to those who were at the press meet. When . she walked in to take her seat, said Shira Blum, an online project . manager, 'She seemed totally healthy. She was very . energetic, hilarious, funny. And it was such a shock, a surprise to hear . the news this morning.' Rivers took questions and said she wakes up every morning and 'is thankful that everything works,' Blum added.
Melissa Rivers released a statement saying her mother does remain on life support 'at this time'
Friends of comedian have said she is making a slow but steady recovery .
Dismissed rumors she will be left needing a wheelchair after botched surgery .
Doctors on Sunday started the process of bringing Joan Rivers out of her medically-induced coma .
Sources say the family are considering a lawsuit routine procedure .
Taping of Rivers' Fashion Police show on E! has been canceled as doctors evaluate possible brain damage .
Joan Rivers' daughter released a statement this morning confirming that the comedian is on life support - despite claims by the comedian’s friends that she was slowly recovering. ‘On behalf of my mother and our family, we are extremely grateful for all the love and support we've received. At this time she does remain on life support,’ Melissa Rivers stated. ‘I know my mother would be overwhelmed by the continued outpouring of kindness and I want to thank everyone for keeping us in their prayers.’ Scroll down for video . Just hours before the throat operation that has . left her in a medically-induced coma, comedian Joan Rivers was laughing . about 'going in for a little procedure', close friend Jay Redack, left, . has revealed . The statement appears to contradict claims made by the 81-year-old comedians' friends, who said that Rivers was on the road to recovery. Joan . Rivers is making slow and steady progress in her recovery as doctors . continue the delicate task of waking her from a medically induced coma . this week. The . 81-year-old comedian stopped breathing during minor throat surgery on . Thursday in New York City and was left battling for her life over the . weekend amid fears the entertainer might be left a 'vegetable' or . needing a 'wheelchair'. However, . friends have dismissed these claims and said that Rivers is improving . day by day at Mount Sinai Hospital with her daughter, Melissa Rivers, at . her bedside. 'It's a slow process, but she's on the road to recovery,' said a source to E! 'She's getting better. Don't believe all this ridiculous speculation.' Daughter, Melissa, who rushed across the country from LA to New York on Thursday has focused all her attention onto her mother's recovery. 'She is a rock. She is calmer than I've ever seen her,' the source said to E! News. 'All these reports about doomsday are not true. She is her mother's daughter and she's tough as nails. She's the person keeping everyone together.' This comes after it was reported Rivers was laughing about 'going in for a little procedure' before she suffered cardiac and respiratory arrest during her operation at an Upper East Side Clinic. Margie Stern and daughter Ricki Stern seen visited Joan Rivers at Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan on Sunday . Doctors on Sunday started the delicate process to bring the comedian out of a medically induced coma which will take until Tuesday. Doctors fear the stroke could have left her 'as a vegetable' or 'needing a wheelchair'. Earlier . on Sunday her close friend and collaborator for 40 years Jay Redack had . attempted to visit her in hospital, but was turned away by security. He . was one of the last people to spent time with Rivers. The old friends . had enjoyed dinner on Wednesday night after her hour-long stand-up . session at the Laurie Beechman Theatre in Times Square. ‘She . said her throat was bothering her for a long time. Her voice was . getting more raspy, if that was possible. She said she was just going in . for a little procedure in the morning, that was it,’ he told the Daily News. Redack described Rivers as 'up and alive and having a ton of fun' at dinner. 'We laughed out asses off,' he said. Daughter . Melissa, 46, released a statement on Sunday thanking everyone for their . messages of support. She is pictured on Thursday, with . 13-year-old son Cooper (left), after rushing to the airport in LA to . catch a flight to NYC to be with her mother . 'What’s ironic is at dinner, we were talking about who goes first. I’ve know Joan so damn long.' 'I said, "Here’s what I’ll leave you if I go first. What’ll you leave me?" She said, "I'll think about it,'" he said. Other friends to have visited the hospital included Margie Stern, one of Rivers' closest friends. Rivers' family are said to be . considering bringing a lawsuit after she suddenly stopped breathing . during the 'botched' procedure. 'Shock and upset is turning to anger, and they are looking for someone to blame,' a source close to the family told the Daily News. 'An 81-year-old should not have that procedure as an outpatient.' New York Police Department has said that it is not yet looking at launching an investigation into the clinic's actions. Daughter Melissa, 46, released a statement on Sunday thanking everyone for their . messages of support and gave a brief update on her mother's condition. 'My mother would be so touched by the tributes and prayers that we have received from around the world,' she said. 'Her . condition remains serious but she is receiving the best treatment and . care possible. We ask that you continue to keep her in your thoughts as . we pray for her recovery.' Worried sick: Kelly Osbourne, Rivers' Fashion Police co-host, took to Twitter to express her support for the 81-year-old comedian whom she called her 'grandma' Well wisher: Giuliana Rancic (far right), who also hosts Fashion Police, expressed her love for Rivers on Twitter . While . she is doing her best to sound upbeat in public, 'Melissa is apparently . totally hysterical and is at a loss for what to do,' said the source. Doctors . put the Emmy-winner into a medically-induced coma to stabilize her . vital signs and since then she has been breathing with the help of a . life-support machine. Sources told the Daily News that Rivers . would not want to live unless she could enjoy 'a full and active life. ... (She) would never want to be a burden on anyone.' E! colleagues and a host . of other famous well-wishers took to Twitter at the weekend to send prayers to the . formidable comedian. Giuliana . Rancic and Kelly Osbourne, Rivers' Fashion Police co-hosts, expressed . their love and support for their stricken friend. High praise: Donald Trump, who met Joan Rivers on Season 2 of Celebrity Apprentice, which the E! presenter won in 2009, called the 81-year-old a dear friend and an amazing woman . Heartfelt: Charlie Sheen joined the chorus of well-wishers, urging Rivers to come back to us . 'Praying . for @Joan_Rivers and @MelRivers,' Mrs Rancic wrote on Saturday morning. 'Even though Joan's the strongest woman I know, every single prayer . counts. I love you, Joan.' A devastated Ms Osbourne called her 81-year-old co-presenter her ‘grandma’ and added the hashtag 'inconsolable.’ '4 . the first time in years I got down on my knees & prayed tonight! I . encourage U 2 do the same,' the TV fashionista tweeted at her . 3.77million followers on Friday night. Charlie Sheen also joined the chorus of well-wishers on Twitter, writing: 'Please come back to us young lady.' Real estate mogul and fellow reality TV maven Donald Trump called Ms Rivers his 'dear friend' and an ‘amazing woman.' Ms Rivers famously won season 2 of Trump’s Celebrity Apprentice in 2009. Fellow . funnywoman Sarah Silverman tweeted on Friday: 'Jesus Christ, Joan. You . can't be in the hospital - you have work to do! This is BULL****.' The 81-year-old's daughter Melissa, seen here with her mom last year, . is in New York and at her mother's bedside at Mount Sinai Hospital . The comic's daughter, Melissa rushed to her mother's side on Thursday after flying from LA to New York. Melissa is staying at her Upper East Side apartment in . the same building where her mother lives as she struggles to cope with the health emergency. Friends . are helping care for Melissa's 13-year-old son Cooper who flew with her . from LA. Earlier on Thursday they were pictured at Los Angeles airport . as they traveled to be by the star's side. A . picture of health only the day before she was rushed to hospital, Rivers accepted a bouquet of . flowers from a fan as she finished her stand-up performance at around . 9.30pm on Wednesday. The . entertainment legend even posed for pictures with a fan on the way out . of the Laurie Beechman Theatre, only to suffer respiratory failure less . than twelve hours later during surgery on her throat. Thank . you: Joan Rivers accepts a bouquet of flowers from a fan after wrapping . up her one hour performance at the Laurie Beechman Theatre on Wednesday . night at around 9.30pm . Busy . as always: Joan Rivers is pictured here at a press event in New York . City on Wednesday evening for her book, Diary of a Mad Diva. She is . currently in a medically induced coma at Mount Sinai Hospital after she . stopped breathing during vocal cord surgery . While . doctors were said to be keen to keep her in a coma until the weekend, . there is concern about the length of time her brain was starved of . oxygen. But . less than 12 hours before she stopped breathing, Rivers was her usual . irrepressible self, making jokes about her own longevity and mortality . to an audience of around 100. 'She did a joke onstage, she goes, ‘I’m 81 — I could go at any moment,’ said Shade Rupe, 45. ‘I could fall over right here and you all could say, ''I was there!’ Rupe, who spoke to the New York Daily News, said that Rivers' comedy was as quick-witted as it has always been. 'She . was so on,' he said. 'If you had me guess her age, I’d say she was in . her 50s. She didn’t miss a step, she didn’t go ditzy, she didn’t forget . anything and her timing was amazing.' Rupe grabbed a picture with the star outside the theater and said that Rivers 'looked fantastic.' And, . as testament to the television host's vigor, Rivers was even promoting . her book, Diary of a Mad Diva, before she took to the stage on . Wednesday. Rivers, . who has been a fixture on American television since the mid-1960s, was . her forthright self according to those who were at the press meet. When . she walked in to take her seat, said Shira Blum, an online project . manager, 'She seemed totally healthy. She was very . energetic, hilarious, funny. And it was such a shock, a surprise to hear . the news this morning.' Rivers took questions and said she wakes up every morning and 'is thankful that everything works,' Blum added.
we've received. At this time she does remain on life support,’ Melissa Rivers stated. ‘I know my medically-induced coma, comedian Joan Rivers was recovery. Joan . Rivers is making slow and steady progress in her recovery as doctors . continue on Sunday started the delicate process to bring the comedian out of a medically induced coma 'needing a wheelchair'. Earlier . on Sunday her Rivers' family are said to be . considering bringing a lawsuit after she suddenly stopped Melissa, 46, released a statement on Sunday Rivers' Fashion Police co-hosts, expressed . on . Wednesday. Rivers, . who has been a fixture