Selena Gomez's best friend 'beyond grateful' to donate kidney

Actress Francia Raisa is "beyond grateful" to have been able to donate a kidney to her best friend Selena Gomez because the experience has been so life changing.

The Come and Get It hitmaker, who was diagnosed with autoimmune disease lupus in 2015, went public with her surgery news in a candid Instagram post on Thursday morning (14Sep17), revealing she underwent a kidney transplant earlier this summer (17).

She went on to heap praise on her donor and actress pal Francia for giving her "the ultimate gift" of her kidney, adding, "I am incredibly blessed. I love you so much sis".

Her message of thanks was shared beside a snap of the two ladies holding hands while lying in side-by-side hospital beds.

Now Francia, who has appeared in the movie Bring It On: All or Nothing and TV shows such as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, has made it clear the feeling is mutual with her own touching social media post.

Sharing the same hospital bed photo on her Instagram account, the actress admits becoming an organ donor has been an eye-opening experience.

"I am beyond grateful that God would trust me with something that not only saved a life, but changed mine in the process," she captioned the image. "This was part of our story, and we will share it soon, but what is important now is that this is not the only story. For more information regarding Lupus, please go to the Lupus Research Alliance website: www.lupusresearch.org -- Love you sis, so glad we're on this journey together. xx"

Francia's heartwarming post prompted Modern Family actress Sarah Hyland, who received her own kidney transplant in 2012, to applaud her friend, commenting, "You're an angel!"

Selena has since bounced back from her life-changing operation and was spotted returning to work on the New York City set of Woody Allen's as-yet-untitled new movie on Thursday, hours after her big surgery reveal.