Rangers legend Andy Goram has been told the heartbreaking news that he has just six months to live having been diagnosed with cancer.
The 58-year-old former goalkeeper has been diagnosed with Level 4 oesophageal cancer, with a specialist predicting that he only has six months left to live with the disease being inoperable.
He was offered treatment but was told that it would only give him another 12 week, so has turned this down having seen how ill it made his ex-wife Miriam, who battled cancer last year. Speaking to the Daily Record, Goram has revealed that he only started feeling unwell around seven weeks ago - his main symptom being severe heartburn - but waited to see a doctor before then getting transferred to hospital.
He said: “I’ll fight like I’ve never fought before. I thought I had severe indigestion. It was as though my gullet was blocked. After a few weeks, it got worse and nothing was getting through.
“Everything I ate or drank didn’t get halfway to my stomach and I threw it back up. I couldn’t get a face-to-face with my GP for two weeks, by which time I was in total agony. I’d also lost 4 stone in four weeks.”
“I had a CT scan at Monklands, then was rushed to Wishaw General and told my next of kin should be with me. That is when the alarm bells started ringing. I realised I had cancer.”
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The illness has sadly spread to Goram’s liver, right lung, three vertebrae and ribs. He also spoke about just how hard it was to hear the cancer is inoperable but declared he is determined to continue living his life.
“The surgeon explained where all the cancer was and it was inoperable. Danny [Gorman’s son] broke down while I was trying to assess the situation,” Goram continued. “The word ‘inoperable’ hit me hard. I knew I was in for a fight.”
“I’ve been told by the doc, ‘Go enjoy your everyday life and be as normal as possible’. My pain is manageable. I can still go see friends and still be myself. I’ll be here as long as I possibly can. The only difference is the timebomb is ticking away.”
During his time with Rangers, Goram won five Scottish Premier League titles, as well as three Scottish cups and two League Cups. He was voted as the SFWA Football of the Year in 1993 and was also named the SPFA Players’ Player of the Year.
As well as Rangers, the former stopper also represented the likes of Oldham Athletic, Hibernian, Sheffield United, whilst having also enjoyed a brief loan spell at Manchester United under Sir Alex Ferguson. He made 43 appearances for the Scotland national team.
