( CNN ) -- Joan Rivers remains on life support five days after suffering respiratory and cardiac arrest during a medical procedure , her daughter said Tuesday . Melissa Rivers has shared few details with the public about her mother 's condition since she was rushed to Manhattan 's Mount Sinai Hospital Thursday . `` On behalf of my mother and our family , we are extremely grateful for all the love and support we 've received , '' she said in her latest statement . `` At this time she does remain on life support . 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 . '' The Rivers family 's previous statement Sunday said they were `` keeping our fingers crossed . '' The Cleveland Clinic explains what being on life support means : `` Life support replaces or supports a failing bodily function . When patients have curable or treatable conditions , life support is used temporarily until the illness or disease can be stabilized and the body can resume normal functioning . At times , the body never regains the ability to function without life support . '' Rivers , 81 , stopped breathing during throat surgery at a Manhattan medical clinic Thursday morning , according to the New York Fire Department . She apparently suffered cardiac and respiratory arrest during a procedure . She was listed in critical condition in New York 's Mount Sinai Hospital , where paramedics took her by ambulance . Rivers was undergoing an apparently minor elective procedure at the clinic , which is about a mile away from the hospital where she was taken . Despite her age , Rivers was a busy comedian . She had been scheduled to tape new episodes of the E ! show `` Fashion Police '' with her daughter in New York this week , but the tapings have been canceled , a network spokeswoman said . She performed her comedy act at New York 's Laurie Beechman Theatre last Wednesday night and was booked to perform at the Count Basie Theater in Red Bank , New Jersey , on Friday . Michael Lucas , who was in the audience for Rivers ' last show Wednesday night , told CNN that she joked about death . `` She said , 'You know I 'm 81 years old , and I could drop dead at any moment and you would be so lucky because you will have a story to tell your friends for the rest of your life , ' `` Lucas said . `` Then she mimicked people talking about what it was like to see her drop dead on stage . '' Joan Rivers 'stands behind ' Gaza quotes . CNN 's Jennifer Bixler , Carolyn Sung and Doug Ganley contributed to this report .
Rivers ' daughter has shared few details about mother 's condition . The Rivers family 's previous statement said they ` ` are keeping our fingers crossed '' Rivers stopped breathing during throat surgery at a local medical clinic ' . She was undergoing an apparently minor elective surgery at the time .