Ex-Wales football star John Hartson is to undergo two more operations in his battle with cancer, and reveals he was just minutes from losing his life.

The ex-Arsenal and Celtic striker was diagnosed in July with testicular cancer that had spread to his brain, but says he is now "over the worst".

"I came within 10 minutes of losing my life," he told BBC Sport Wales.

"I had everything to fight for, it was a very tough time. I was unconscious for around five to six weeks."

Since then he has undergone chemotherapy, lung and brain surgery.

He told the tv programme: "I have some surgery to come... surgery on my lungs and little bit of surgery on my brain, just to take the debris out."

He also claimed that a recent controversial move of emergency neurosurgery from Swansea to Cardiff might also have claimed his life, had it happened before his diagnosis.

"I had to make the ambulance journey from Singleton Hospital to Morriston [both in Swansea].

"If the neurology unit was in Cardiff where it is now, then I would probably not have made the journey."

However, Hartson remains positive:

"I'm feeling great. I'm feeling healthy, I'm feeling very strong.

"I'm getting out and about and driving my car and working. So I feel really good."

606: DEBATE Give your best wishes to John Hartson

The ex-Wales star returned to work as a television pundit in December.

However, further medical treatment looms and he said: "You just have to clear out all what's left in the body now and there's still a little bit of scar tissue and things that can develop.

"But they say I've probably been through the worst.

"I've had the two brain operations, pneumonia and God knows how many sessions of chemotherapy so I'm hoping now that I can ride these operations and come back stronger than ever."

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