Richard Hadlee to undergo surgery after being cancer diagnosed

His wife confirmed in a statement that another bout of surgery is required this week for the liver cancer before further chemotherapy

Legendary former New Zealand all-rounder Sir Richard Hadlee is scheduled to undergo a surgery this week following secondary cancer discovered in his liver.

Earlier this month, Hadlee was diagnosed with bowel cancer after a Tumour was found during a routine colonoscopy. However, his family revealed last month that he had a tumour removed after being diagnosed with bowel cancer and was expected to make a full recovery after a course of chemotherapy.

On Monday, his wife, Lady Dianne Hadlee confirmed in a statement that another bout of surgery is required this week for the liver cancer before further chemotherapy

"This week, Richard will undergo further surgery after secondary cancer was discovered in his liver. Medical advice is that it's still at a very early stage and is operable," she said in the statement.

Hadlee is regarded as one of the greatest fast bowlers of all time and was the first to take 400 Test wickets.

By the time he retired in 1990, he had played 86 Tests and taken 431 wickets at 22.29. He was also a hard-hitting batsman with a Test career total of 3,124 runs, including two centuries and 15 half-centuries, at an average of 27.16.