Australian allrounder Cameron Green revealed Thursday he suffers from a chronic kidney disease and that he was not expected to live past the age of 12.
Now 24, he has gone on to become a key member of the Australian team across all three formats, although he has fallen out of favour in recent months.
“My parents got told when I was born I had a chronic kidney disease,” he said in an interview with Channel Seven during Australia’s first Test against Pakistan in Perth.
“Basically there are no symptoms, it just got picked up during ultrasounds.”
The Perth-born Green said his kidney functionality to filter blood was currently at about 60 per cent.
“With chronic kidney disease there’s five stages, with stage one being the least severe, and stage five being transplant or dialysis,” he said.
“Fortunately, I’m stage two, but if you don’t look after them enough, it easily goes back down. Kidneys can’t get better. It’s irreversible.”
His father Gary told the broadcaster the original prognosis was distressing.
“There were life-expectancy issues that he might not expect to live past 12 years of age,” he said.
Green has largely been unaffected by the disease throughout his cricket career, but said there had been times of cramping that could be attributed to the problem.
Green, who has played 24 Tests but was left out of the squad for Perth in favour of Mitchell Marsh, said he was going public in the hope it would bring greater attention to the disease.