Former British number one tennis player Elena Baltacha has vowed to fight liver cancer “with everything I have”.
The 30-year-old, who retired from the sport last November due to a series of injuries, is undergoing treatment and thanked people for their support.
The Ukraine-born player grew up mainly in Perth, Scotland, while her father, Sergei, played football with St Johnstone. Elena represented Team GB in the 2012 Olympics.
She said: “I have recently been diagnosed with cancer of the liver.
“I’m currently under- going treatment and fighting this illness with everything I have.”
At the age of 19, Elena was diagnosed with primary sclerosing cholan- gitis, a chronic liver con- dition which affects the immune system.
She managed the condition throughout her career with medication and regular blood tests. She went on to win 11 singles titles.
She has been a patron of the Children’s Liver Disease Foundation since 2010. Since retiring in November, she has married her long-term coach and partner Nino Severino and has been coaching junior tennis players at her Ipswich-based academy.
Judy Murray, a friend of Elena and captain of Britain’s women’s Fed Cup tennis team, said: “Obviously, this is a tough time for Bally, Nino and her family.
“But she is a such a determined, upbeat person and everyone around her is staying positive as well.
“I know she’ll be really grateful for all the support that she’s getting.”
Commentators have pointed to Great Britain Davis Cup player Ross Hutchins as inspiration for Baltacha. The 29-year-old Hutchins returned to action this year with doubles partner Colin Fleming after recovering from Hodgkins Lymphoma – a form of cancer. Hutchins was diagnosed with the illness in December 2012 but last July announced he was in remission.
Fellow player Anne Keothavong, who was at the top of British female tennis with Balatacha for many years, tweeted a picture of the pair along with a message of support.
It read: “She’s one of the people I most admire for her courage and determination. You’ll fight through this Elena.”
Andrew Langford, chief executive of the British Liver Trust, said: “The chances are she will have known for a while she was at risk of liver cancer because of her PSC (primary sclerosing cholangitis).
“It’s a genetic illness that infects your bile duct. You get a back flow of bile into your liver and that causes scarring in your liver. As the liver is more scarred it will be so damaged that you will have cirrhosis.
“Normally when we talk about liver cirrhosis people think about alcohol, but this is not related to alcohol. I would imagine she will have a range of treatments. It will be a very difficult time for her and it may be that she eventually needs to have a liver transplant.”