Stiliyan Petrov upbeat about leukaemia battle

Published on 06/07/2012 00:00

ASTON Villa club captain Stiliyan Petrov believes he has conquered “the hardest bit” in his battle to overcome acute leukaemia.

Former Celtic midfielder Petrov says he has taken inspiration via messages of support while undergoing treatment for the past three months. The Bulgarian international celebrated his 33rd birthday by attending Villa’s first day of pre-season under new manager Paul Lambert at Bodymoor Heath yesterday.

Petrov said: “I’ve been a strong character since the start of my career. I always believed that you need to be patient and believe in things – and I believe that I will get better. I know I’ve been through a hard time but the doctors, nurses and everybody in the hospital have been great to me.

“I’ve got a few more months of chemotherapy and I need to go through it but I think the hardest bit is over and from now on I just need to wait for the result to be positive.”

Petrov, who played alongside Lambert at Celtic, added: “I’ve had a lot of people with the same problem as mine and they’ve beaten it. They live their life now. I have a lot of hope and I haven’t stopped believing since the start and I will never stop believing. My family believe as well.

“It is a great help when you’ve got letters from people who have beaten this and they have already lived 20 or 30 years. You say to yourself ‘I am going to be there as well’. I am just not going to stop fighting.

“I am 33 today. I’ve had so many wishes and messages and I hope I will keep receiving these messages for a few more years – a good 50 years!”

l Donations can be made via www.justgiving.com/pedalforpetrov