Nigeria goalkeeper Carl Ikeme is upbeat about his chances of beating acute leukemia after discovering only last week that he had the disease, Completesportsnigeria.com reports.
Leukaemia is described as a cancer which starts in blood-forming tissue, usually the bone marrow. It leads to the over-production of abnormal white blood cells, the part of the immune system which defends the body against infection.
However, acute leukaemia is curable and Ikeme appears to have already started the battle to defeat the dreaded disease after he was diagnosed during a blood test at his English Championship club Wolverhampton Wanderers for pre-season.
“Thank you all for your kindness and Love ?? The start of a new chapter and ready to give it my all! Thank you ??,” Ikeme, 31, tweeted on Sunday with a picture of himself in a hospital bed.
Wolves have promised that Ikeme will receive the best medical treatment to beat leukaemia, while the whole football world – including fellow goalkeepers like David de Gea and Iker Casillas, Super Eagles players, the Nigeria Football Federation, other football clubs and fans – has united in wishing the Nigeria well.
Ikeme, who became Super Eagles No.1 in 2015 following the sudden retirement of Vincent Enyeama, missed the end of last season due to an injury and will now miss the rest of Nigeria’s campaign to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.