The Belfast-born snooker star, Alex Higgins, has disclosed that he has throat cancer. The two-times world champion told the Daily Express that he had a cancerous growth removed from his mouth two years ago. Cancer of the throat has since been diagnosed.
"It's very sore," said Mr Higgins, who only agreed to be interviewed about his deteriorating health because the newspaper was paying him. He is penniless, according to his friend and fellow snooker player, Mr Jimmy White.
Another friend, Mr Doug James, said Mr Higgins was "in complete denial about it, and it's making him unstable. I've been his friend for 25 years, but I'm drained after a day with him."
Mr Higgins has been involved in arguments with the sport's ruling body and has dominated tabloid headlines with his alcohol-fuelled antics away from the snooker table. He is still a character, the article concluded, a very sad character.