A former top flight football referee has spoken of the cancer which has ravaged his body and forced his weight to plummet dramatically.

Paul Alcock said he has learned to become positive and communicate as a result of the battle with the disease.

The Premier League great, famed for showing Paolo Di Canio red and receiving a solid shove in return, has had a terrible couple of years.

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Initially diagnosed in August 2015, he underwent an intensive period of chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

“I was in Pembury Hospital for 24 days and lost three stone. I was only 12 stone to start with and looked like a bag of bones. I was discharged but four weeks later there was another lump.”

The 63-year-old, of Church Street, Boughton Monchelsea, found himself back in hospital. At first doctors were stumped, but all it took was for one to shine a head torch into his mouth to discover the source of the cancer.

“I said, ‘so you’ve spent thousands and thousands on scans and all it took was a pit helmet?’ He just laughed before going on to explain how he was going to sort it out.”

Paul describes the procedure to remove the tumour and reconstruct his jaw in graphic detail.

It sounds like a scene from The Terminator but miraculously, and against all expectations, he was up walking and talking within days. The cancer had gone.

“I set myself a goal of making and eating Christmas dinner. I cooked for six and ate half as much as everyone else but I’d achieved my goal.”

Weeks later Paul was back in hospital, struggling to swallow. This time he had cancer in his throat.

“It was very emotional the first two times I was operated on, I genuinely thought I was going to die, but the third time I was absolutely fine,” said Paul.

He added: “A doctor came in to see me and asked what team I support, at first I wouldn’t tell him, he said ‘come on Paul, you’re not a ref anymore’ reluctantly I told him I was an Arsenal fan, turned out he was Tottenham.

‘Just for that have this,’ he said and injected me. Next thing I know I was waking up from surgery, it was a great way to normalise the situation.”

Paul said: “Throughout it all my two children have been incredible, I don’t live with my wife anymore but she’s been so supportive as has everyone at Maidstone Hospital.”

The grandfather has remained incredibly active – working two to three hours a day and assessing referees in the second tier of English football.

Paul’s cancer is incurable but it is treatable and he doesn’t care if he has to undergo treatment for 20 or 30 years as long as he has that time.

Paul said: “Yes I have got cancer but I’m not ill. I don’t need care and don’t need to stay in bed I just take two tablets a day and that’s it. I certainly don’t need sympathy.”

If ever there was an example of someone practising what he preaches its Paul Alcock, a man whose extraordinary attitude may well have saved his life.