On January 27, a day after he left for US, Yuvraj Singh tweeted: "Reading lance Armstrong s book it's not about the bike ! I'm sure it will motivate me and pull me throu this time! Livestrong yuvstrong!" (sic).
The man who made India world champions in ODIs just a few months ago, was looking for inspiration from another champion who survived testicular cancer to make Tour de France his own for seven years in a row. A tumor, which was thought to be non-malignant till not so long ago, has been diagnosed as malignant and the left-hander is undergoing chemotherapy at the Cancer Research Institute in Boston.
His physiotherapist Dr Jatin Chaudhary, however, assured that the ailment is curable and the batsman would be fit to resume cricket in May. His mother Shabnam Singh could not be reached while his former cricketer father Yograj refused comments on the matter.
"It is a rare tumor and is cancerous but it has been detected in stage one itself. Doctors had to decide whether to continue medication or go for chemotherapy but since parts of the tumor are just above the artery of his heart, there was a danger that while running, it could burst. But it is 100 per cent curable," Chaudhary said.
"The doctors decided that he would have to undergo chemotherapy and he travelled to the US on January 26. End of March, he would undergo a CT scan and should recover by then. After that it is just some rehabilitation in April before he is fit to be back on the field in May," he added.
Yuvraj, who was Player of the Tournament in the World Cup last year with 362 runs, 15 wickets and four Man-of-the-Match awards, has also been taking ayurvedic medicines to battle the disease.
"After ayurvedic treatment only three cycles of chemotherapy are required. Initially when the cancer was diagnosed after a biopsy in October end, doctors feared that the treatment would be six cycles of chemotherapy," Chaudhary said.
"Thankfully, no surgery is required, he is already a lot better than what he was and can't wait to be back on the cricket field," he said. Chaudhary said the detection of cancer was delayed by wrong diagnosis by an Indian hospital.
"His first biopsy report was stolen from his car and the second from a hospital, I don't want to name, did not give the correct diagnosis. It was a Russian doctor who detected the cancer and after consultations with US doctors, it was decided that Yuvraj would undergo chemo," he said.
Yuvraj has played 37 Tests, scoring 1,775 runs at an average of 34.80. He has 8,051 runs at an average of 37.62 from his 274-match ODI career, the highlight of which was his stellar role in India's World Cup triumph last year. In 23 Twenty20s, Yuvraj has scored 567 runs at 31.50.
Yuvraj Singh has gone bald and the Indian cricketer has posted his latest picture showing the after-effects of the treatment on Twitter.
"Finally the hair has gone! But #livstrong #yuvstrong," Yuvraj posted alongside a link to a picture of him without hair on the site.
The 30-year-old left-hander has been in the U.S. since last month and is currently undergoing chemotherapy in the Cancer Research Institute in Boston.
"I will fight and come back as a stronger man cause I have the prayers of my nation! Thank you to the media for their support and respecting my privacy," Yuvraj had written earlier.
"and of course everyday I look forward to come back and wear my india jersey my india cap and represent my country again jai hind," he had stated.
Giving a glimpse into his routine there, Yuvraj today tweeted "20 minutes cycle in the gym felt good after a while!" "Amuls new ad is very cute I must say!" he added referring to a new print ad by the dairy product company, which goes with the tagline 'Yu and Vi will fight it out together'.
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